The Perfect Ending: With a Twist
by Chin-Chilla Boy
Summary: Three years later, and the story is updated. Garnet is lost in the mountains, chasing ghosts, Vivi and Freya are trapped in the Iifa Tree, Amarant is snooping around Treno for answers and Steiner and Eiko are on the hunt for a missing queen. Read on!
1. Chapter 1

Queen Garnet had hardly been paying much attention to the show, remembering and reflecting on the same day, two years earlier, when a certain young thief had come into her life to change it forever…

She was thinking of the previous showing of 'I Want to be Your Canary', by the Tantalus Troupe, how a member of the group, Marcus, had played the lead that year. However this year something was different, Marcus was now playing the role that a very good friend of hers, nay, the love of her life had played two years before.

The man on stage now wore a heavy black cloak, it trailed along behind him, covered his hands and completely shadowed his face. Not an inch of the man was visible…but, whoever he was, he was a splendid actor.

The music suddenly had hit a climax, 'Marcus' was alone on stage.

"As the sun lends me no ear, I pray instead to the twin moons!"

Garnet was pulled out of her reverie, she began to pay close attention; the show was very near to its climax.

"I beseech thee, wondrous moonlight, grant me my only wish!"

Thinking once again of Zidane, she thought to herself, _Please allow his wish to come true…at least one of us will be happy…_

The figure in the black cloak whipped around, pulling the cloak off to reveal who he was, "Bring my beloved Dagger to me!" he cried out.

Garnet stood up and flung herself to the balcony, she couldn't believe her eyes, she blinked furiously and rubbed at them with her silk covered wrists, but sure as the sky is blue, there he was, Zidane. Standing proudly before her on the stage, she turned and ran up the small staircase to the oaken double doors. She quickly made her way to them only to be stopped by Steiner's and Beatrix's out stretched arms, she stared in disbelief at the doors, then they slowly cracked open, she looked from Steiner who simply smiled, to Beatrix who gave a shallow bow saying "Your Majesty."

Garnet launched herself through the windows, and then set off down the winding staircase, tears began forming in her eyes as she took a sharp turn off of the staircase and out the doors to her right, the guards unable to do anything.

The raven haired beauty blinked quickly to remove the streaming tears from her eyes, she tried politely to ask people to move, she gently nudged audience members out of her way, soon a path began to open for her as she picked up speed.

Alas one Alexandrian was too slow, he turned to see the commotion behind him, elbowing the queen in the collarbone, the force of the impact making her spin, the chain holding onto the pendent was weak, the chain broke and sent the pendant flying.

The queen clasped her hands around her bare neck, she looked down at the pendent for what seemed like ages…she couldn't decide what to do.

Finally after what seemed like another year had passed, she turned and ran toward the stage. She sprinted now…only a few feet left…she reached her hands up and threw off her tiara. Throwing her arms back she ran as fast as she could, finally pushing off the ground with all her might she threw herself into the arms of the only man she had ever loved; the only one she has ever loved, and the only one she would ever love.

The impact sent them spinning, they slowed and Zidane softly set her down upon the stage. She hugged him with all her strength, resting her head in the crook of his neck and feeling as though she never wanted to leave his warm, loving embrace.

She pulled away lightly, and looked up into his bright blue eyes that flowed with energy, he gave her a cheeky smirk, and a joyous tear fell from her own hazel orbs. She threw herself into his body again, happiness filled her heart and mind, her whole body and soul was flooded with joyous celebrations because he had finally returned to her.

Then another emotion filled her, her heart was on fire, she was filled with anger. He had taken so long, she believed him to be dead. She punched him in the shoulder, once, no twice, roughly. Again she punched him but with lackluster. She couldn't stay mad at him, because he was back from the dead.

She pulled away again and looked into his eyes once more "How did you survive...?"

"I didn't have a choice, I had to live, I wanted to come home to you. So…I sang your song." He replied, staring into her amber eyes as a tear fell from his own.

"Our song." She said as she stood on tiptoes to put her supple crimson lips to his own.

(A/N: I need something terrible to happen, so if ya'll want to give me some ideas for something really bad happening give me some e-mail me at or try the yahoo one I check it more often…Reviews are nice…I like reviews! But I need ideas! PLEASE SEND ME E-Mail full of ideas!"


	2. Chapter 2

The audience gasped. Confused murmuring could be heard from all over. Nervous giggles erupted from the children in the crowd.

Garnet looked confused; she pulled away from Zidane and looked at his face fully for the first time.

"Oh my God." She said barely above a whisper, she sounded frightened, "how? But… but you were… oh my God." She said again as her eyes filled with tears.

The man that stood before her was not Zidane. He was a new member of Tantalus. He had shaggy blond hair, unlike the Zidane she knew. His jaw was squarer than Zidane's, and  
had a small beard around the mouth and chin. Everything about him was so much like Zidane but slightly off.

The man stood dumbstruck, unable to conjure the ability of speech. The crowd was in an absolute uproar now. No one was laughing, all were deeply bewildered, the childish giggling  
had ceased; concerned mothers and wives were whispering hurriedly to one another.

"Isn't that the queen?" one whispered

"It is! What in the world?" another whispered back.

"Mommy, mommy! Is Queen Garnet in the play too mommy?" a small daughter asked her mother.

Garnet stood wide eyed, unable to grasp what she had just done. She looked back at the unknown actor, "But you…you…you spoke to me didn't you? Tell me you just spoke to me! I don't wan-" she cut off. The man was still wearing the black cloak, and Ruby was standing on the wings, she had just started to make her entrance.

She looked down at her feet awkwardly; her eyes were streaming with tears. The queen turned and ran off the stage sobbing madly.

The audience was silent and quickly made a path for her as she raced back to the palace. She pushed the doors open roughly, stormed up the stairs, and dashed into her quarters.

The queen had passed her generals on her mad dash up to her quarters. Beatrix looked to Steiner and gave him a worried look, he opened his mouth but before he could say anything Beatrix shook her head and followed Garnet.

She strode into the main room connecting the queen's adolescent room, and the room of her late mother; the one Garnet now occupied.

The Alexandrian general crossed the room with a graceful stride, the two guards before the stairs coming to attention as she passed.

She grabbed the brass knob of the door, and slowly edged it open and heard soft sobs escape the lips of her queen.

She opened the door fully and looked around at Garnet. She was sitting on the bed with her knees pulled up to her chest, sobbing quietly as she rocked back and forth.

Beatrix crossed the room to the bed, and sat on the edge. Garnet kept her eyes down as she sobbed and Beatrix put her arms around the young queen's shoulders.

Garnet leaned into Beatrix. She was no longer just her General or servant, she was a friend.

Beatrix was the one Garnet could count on in moments like these as she had become a maternal figure.

Something Garnet still needed; something Dagger still needed. For at this moment she was no longer Garnet.

When she felt she had finally laid her eyes upon the man she had missed for two excruciatingly long years, she felt such bliss that the sight of him brought Dagger back.

Garnet would never have run onto a stage during the middle of a play but Dagger would. She sobbed loudly and her body was wracked with uncontrollable shaking now. All the knight could do was to hold on, and be there to console Dagger.

Six hours, several hundred tissues and three gallons of ice cream later, she had stopped sobbing, but tears still occasionally rolled down her cheeks.

Beatrix sat in the chair listening idly as Dagger retold her account of what happened for the umpteenth time.

"I saw him Beatrix, he was right there wasn't he? You saw him, too, didn't you?"

"No your highness I'm sorry but the actor stood there saying his lines, he got to 'Bring my beloved Cornelia to me' and you raced off to the stage."

"But when I did that you two stopped me! You put your arms out and didn't allow me to pass and then you did right?"

"Your Majesty we didn't have time to react to your actions. You just ran past us and through the doorway." Beatrix answered wearily for what seemed like the hundredth time.

Dagger worriedly kept asking the same questions, and every time she expected an answer Beatrix had to give one, it didn't seem like Dagger cared too much what the answer was, because she had seen with her own eyes everything that had happened.

Dagger felt around her neck, the pendant was still there, she reached up to her forehead and her tiara was still there.

"Did these ever once come off?" she asked as she stared blankly at the wall across from her bed.

"No, Garnet. You bumped into a few audience members but nothing knocked your pendant off, and you never threw your tiara off."

"So what does that mean then? Was it a hallucination?" she asked, with a tone of fear in her voice. "Am I going mad?"

"I'm afraid all the symptoms and the differences in experiences point towards a hallucination. But that doesn't mean you're going mad. You just miss him that's all." Beatrix comforted.

Garnet's mind was back on Zidane. The last she had seen of him was when he was standing at the base of the Iifa tree as they took off in the Hilda Garde 3. Tears spilled forth from her eyes once more that night as she thought about him.

"Why did he have to go Beatrix? Why'd he have to go save Kuja of all people?" she asked quietly, her voice barely above a whisper.

Beatrix had no answer to this question; she wasn't there on the adventure with the rest of the gang. She had only caught one glimpse of Kuja and that was when he had his mist creatures attack Alexandria.

She thought about it a bit more and all she could say was, "I don't know, Garnet, but we will one day. Just you wait, he'll be back. I know it." Dagger smiled a sad smile. The tears fell from her eyes freely once again.

She said, "Thank you Beatrix. If you wish you can go." She hiccupped, stood up, pulled back the covers and crawled into the bed.

Beatrix stood and blew out the candles, walking toward the door she said, "He'll be back. You'll see your Highness; he won't allow you to believe he's not coming back. He'll be here someday soon." With that she pulled open the door and walked out, shutting the door slowly with a crisp 'click' of the latch

.  
Dagger rolled over on her side, the tears coming slowly and less frequently now as she thought about Zidane and where he might be. She slowly fell asleep, thinking of how embarrassed she was for her actions, and of why she had seen things others hadn't. It was absolutely humiliating, kissing a complete stranger, running through the middle of a crowd during the middle of a show in front of all of her friends.

Her friends had stayed away that day after the show was so rudely interrupted. Vivi, Freya, and Eiko had tried to get in but when Beatrix came to tell them that Garnet wished to be left alone for a while, and to come back within the week.

That night the remainder of the gang from the days of their adventures was sitting around one of the circular tables at the pub. Amarant, Vivi, Eiko, Freya, and Steiner were all present; Quina was on a vacation back to her home in the Qu's marsh, to hunt for frogs.

"The Prin- Queen seemed very distraught today." Steiner said with a tone of empathy in his voice.

"Maybe 'cause she kissed a complete stranger! Ever think about that?!" Eiko shot at him.

"Settle down, Eiko. We all saw what happened." Freya said calmly, bringing the conversation to order.

"Uh…um, why did Dagger kiss that man?" Vivi asked innocently, his children had been flown back to the black mage village after the show ended that day; Vivi had asked Cid if he wouldn't mind sending them back for him while he caught up with his friends.

"Don't you get it Vivi?" Eiko asked impatiently, "she thought that the guy on stage was Zidane. She misses him a ton."

"Why'd he even go to help Kuja anyways? Idiot, it goes against _my_ nature. Pfft. What a simpleton." Amarant said with disdain at the thought of his last encounter with the thief.

"That still doesn't answer my question: why'd she kiss that guy?" Vivi asked again, this time with a hint of impatience in his voice.

"I heard them through the doors when the guards were being changed" Steiner began, "apparently she hallucinated. When Marcus or whoever that new actor was, said his line 'Bring my beloved Cornelia to me!' she thought he had ripped his cloak off and called to the balcony 'Bring my beloved Dagger to me'"

"But that guy didn't even look like Zidane." Vivi said.

"Yes and he also didn't say 'Bring my beloved Dagger to me.' Like she thought he did." Freya replied casually.

"So she didn't see that she was running down an aisle? How her pendant never was knocked off and how she didn't throw her tiara down?" Eiko asked incredulously.

"That's one helluva hallucination if you ask me." Amarant responded coldly.

"Have you a single sympathetic fiber in your being?" Steiner shot at him. "Don't forget the Princess gave you a full pardon when we returned back here, she can just as easily put a bounty up on your head again." He said shaking his fist at Amarant.

"Guess not. It's not my fault she went a kissed some guy she thought was some other idiot."

"You're such an arrogant ass; you know that, don't you?" Freya said hotly, glaring at him.

Amarant cringed under her gaze, "Yeah… I gotta get going. Lani wants to go to Treno and…yeah I'll see you all later." Amarant drained his glass and stood. He turned, called "Later," over his shoulder, and left the pub.

"So uh…can we go to see her tomorrow?" Vivi asked hopefully after Amarant had left.

"Yes I think that would be acceptable." Steiner said, contemplating the request.  
He finished his drink and stood, "I shall see you all tomorrow. Goodbye Freya, Eiko, Master Vivi." He gave a small bow and left the pub leaving the other three alone.

"So where are you two staying, huh?" Eiko asked quickly.

"Um… no where." Vivi and Freya looked at each other, and responded simultaneously.

"Wanna come back to my place?!" She asked excitedly.

"I don't think Father would mind very much, he loves you, he tells me that he thinks of you as his extended family."

"That's very kind. Would it create a problem if Fratley were to come with us?" Freya asked politely.

"Nope! Let's go!" She said happily jumping from her seat and landing with a thud on the aged wooden floorboards.

Vivi hopped from his seat and fell flat on his face; Freya helped him up as Eiko ran out the door.

"C'mon hurry up, will ya?!" she called from outside. Vivi and Freya walked into the streets of Alexandria, the crimson twilight sky reflecting off the sword of the castle making it look as if it had just come out of the blacksmith's forge.

The three of them made their way back to the Castle. After finding Fratley trying to book a room at the inn and found their way into the harbor, where the Hilda Garde 3 waited, motionless. Eiko, Freya, Fratley, and the reluctant Vivi climbed aboard the airship.

Eiko ran towards the bridge, "Hey Erin!" she cried happily to the air ship captain, who looked up from her book. She was sitting in a soft armchair near the windshield.

"Yes? Are we all ready to get going?" Erin asked hopefully as she marked her page and set it down on the end table.

"Yep! I hope you don't mind but I brought a couple of friends with me, they don't have anywhere to stay so I was hoping maybe they could come home with us." Eiko replied sweetly.

The other three stepped into the bridge, "Wow! This place brings back a lotta memories." Vivi said rather dreamily.

"Oh! Its Freya and Vivi! Hi! How are you two? I haven't seen either one of you in ages! How've you been?" Erin asked happily as she took the helm, and called to the engine room saying "Fire up the engines, boys, we're going home!"

"I've been good. Fratley and I are helping with the rebuilding of Burmecia. It's really coming along, even some of our remaining brothers from Cleyra decided to come help, its like back in the day when Cleyra and Burmecia were one." She smiled at the thought.

"That's good, that's really good. We're so close to being done with the rebuilding of the industrial district, theatre has been done for a few months, just had to build a lot of new theatres and business had a few hundred stores replaced and Lindblum is just flourishing again."

They shared their lives from over the last two years on the trip back home, finally at about 1 A.M that morning they pulled into the main hangar of the Lindblum airship docks and went to the guest room to sleep. They couldn't get to bed until about 3 A.M however, they stayed up continuing their conversation, Erin was having too much fun to go to her home in Lindblum so she sought permission to stay in the guest room with her old friends. Vivi revealed how he came to have six sons. Apparently it was an extremely complex spell that needed a lot of energy, energy he got when the other black mages in the village concentrated all of their magic energy into the spell.

They did this with every black mage in the village and it was now becoming its own actual town, something comparable to Treno. The black mages just keep multiplying. And the older genomes had apparently started to reproduce…in the way all mammals reproduce.

The conversation continued with the building of twenty new airships powered by steam, each faster than the next, now people can travel across the planet in hours compared to the lengthy day long trips of old to the new airship docks of Alexandria, . Finally at 3 A.M. the good nights were said.

"Good night, love." Fratley whispered as he kissed Freya on the cheek sweetly after all the other good nights had been said.

"Ooh, they're so hot for each other." Eiko giggled loudly, "Maybe you two should get your own rooms, huh?" she asked laughing.

Five minutes later, after the laughing had ceased they decided to call it a night, and blew out all of the candles, and fell asleep almost immediately. 

(((A/N. So what'd ya all think? Remember to keep writing in if you want your ideas to be used to continue the story. Reviews are really nice, those make me feel happy, constructive criticism is fine, flames are hot and burn me. But yeah, tell me what you thought of chapter two!! Too long, too short, too repetitive it doesn't matter just send me some reviews I want this to be good. Plus don't forget to send e-mails chock full of ideas!!! Your idea could very well be the basis for the next chapter!!!)))


	3. Chapter 3

I'm really sorry I haven't updated in a while, I had a lotta crap going on, the past month, which I needed to get out of the way. Well, it's all taken care of. So, now I have several weeks before school is in motion again so let's get this show on the road!

Thanks very much to all of you who wrote in with ideas, you may now begin guessing whose idea was used, and hoping it was yours.

Thank you, to Undeniable Mystique for her help with chapter two, all the credit for the idea of hallucination should, and will go to her.

On another note, feel free to leave reviews and _then_ PM me…I always feel more special with reviews to read…thank you for reading.

Now, enough of this! Time for the show.

Dagger could hardly sleep that night. Images of the day's event kept playing through her mind like some sick slideshow. Torturing her with images of Zidane, with images of the unknown actor…

The shocked faces of the audience haunted her. Everywhere she looked she the disapproving faces heard the shocked gasps of the onlooker. She couldn't escape it, try as she might; no matter how fast or how far she ran, the Alexandrines followed.

Garnet woke with a start, she was sweating terribly and the blankets were much too warm. She flung back the covers of the bed, threw her legs over the side and stood.

Dagger glided silently to the window overlooking the lake, the brilliantly pale moons hanging high in the sky, reflected across the dark rippling lake below. The celestial twins in the sky (redundant) illuminated the entire city, she scanned the rooftops and the few visible streets, looking for some sign of life, looking desperately for a thief…but nothing stirred except a stray cat.

The queen turned away from the window. She knew she had been foolish to even think that she might see him tonight, at this hour in the morning. She crossed to her bed; again, she crawled into the warmth of the covers and pulled them around herself, now suddenly quite cold.

She closed her eyes and attempted, once more, to drift into sleep.

Her attempts to sleep were not in vain, as she was finally able to lose all consciousness but it was not restful. She was only to find more jeering crowds, more Zidane lookalikes.

It happened several times that night, and every time Garnet would attempt to fall asleep, but as soon as it would come she would see nothing but Zidane ripping his cloak off. She would hear the gasps of the crowd, and feel as though she were standing naked before her entire kingdom. Again she awoke from her slumber, it must've been the fifteenth time that night; she looked around at the clock on the wall to read 3:37.

"Oh come on…" Garnet sighed to herself. She pulled back the covers and got up from the bed once more, but this time she walked to the door and pulled it open roughly. She was becoming very annoyed that she could no longer sleep peacefully.

Dagger crossed the hall to the large double doors on the other side, where the entrances to the royal chambers were located. Dagger walked quickly and purposefully, her long nightgown flowing along in her wake. She continued through the doors and then down the stairs to her right, she continued into the main hall of the castle, turned left and made her way for the kitchens located there.

The queen quietly made her way into the kitchens—

"—Hello, Dagger Queen!" Quina called happily in her high frog voice.

Dagger let out a small yelp and fell against the wall, her hand over her heart, which had just skipped several beats. Using the wall for support she steadied herself.

"Quina, I had no idea you were here!" She gasped, "what are you doing up so late? Aren't you supposed to be at the swam—arsh, right now?"

Quina ignored the first question and allowed her tongue loll about as she gazed happily upon her queen, "Yes, but I catch frogs quick-now. I come home early, that ok?"

Dagger smiled and shook her head, "of course its ok, it's very nice to have you back, Quina."

"That good," Quina answered happily, "you want me make food now?" She asked hopefully.

"Oh no thanks Quina…" Garnet declined with a polite smile, "could you help me with something though?"

"You want me teach you how cook good food?" Quina asked happily, pulling a large fork from beneath her apron. 

"That would be wonderful but not tonight…sorry Quina." Garnet laughed at her friend's hopefulness to be able to cook and eat.

"That fine, what you need Dagger Queen?" she responded happily.

"Quina, I was wondering…do you still have any sleeping weed?" the sentence felt very awkward, the last time she had asked for the sleep-aid was years earlier…when she had used it on Zidane to come back to Alexandria.

"Yes, I always have extra sleep weed, Beatrix general uses it for baby that cry all night. I hear it all night long, I give her some. I give you some!" she turned and began rummaging in a high cupboard for the herb. "Where I put it?" she mumbled into the corner.

"What?" Garnet asked, taking a step forward, "would you like some help Quina?"

"No thanks, Dagger queen, I found it, here go. No take too much Dagger queen, may never wake up." The lovable Qu warned her.

"Thank you very much Quina…I'll see you in the morning." She turned and left, and as she made her way back into the main hall she heard Quina's call from behind.

"'Night, 'night, Dagger Queen! Be careful with sleepy weed."

Garnet could not help but smile at the antics of her friend. As she made her way back up the stairs, and back into the hall and then finally into her room, she undid the seal on the jar and grabbed out four or five lengths of the slimy weed between her thumb and forefinger.

She placed the jar under her arm and opened the door with her now free hand. Dagger walked around the bed, placed the jar on the table, replaced the cap and sat down in bed. She pulled the covers back over herself and then held the disgusting weed up over her head. She looked up and quickly lowered the length of sleeping weed into her open mouth, chewing quickly she swallowed before she felt any more nauseated.

Dagger shuddered as the last of it slithered down her throat, but the revulsion did not last long. A warming sensation filled her stomach and spread outward, down her legs and into her toes, and at the same time, up her chest and then shoulders; then down her arms and into her fingertips.

Garnet laid back and closed her eyes, and the instant she did she fell into a deep slumber.

There he was again, standing on the stage before her, this time it was Zidane, she stood for several seconds staring at him from her view on the balcony. She turned and made her way for the outdoor throne room doors, Steiner and Beatrix again held up their arms and then let her through, everything happened the way it had the day before, everything. Although this time when she ran to the stage, with joyous tears in her eyes, she looked him up and down before finally leaping toward him. She gave him a great hug, and looked up again into his mesmerizing bright blue eyes. It was actually him; it was her Zidane.

He was in the flesh, she could make out every detail, every flaw in his skin. She was no longer as furious as she had been earlier that day, only thankful, only happy. Her whole being was filled with joy, and she looked back into his shining blue eyes once again. He smirked a little and leaned in slowly…she was millimeters away—

—All was black, her eyes flicked open, light was shining in, illuminating her room. Birds sang just outside the window. She had looked into his face…she had been so close…her lips were almost with his…she thought hopelessly of the dream she had…in the joy she had felt…tears brimmed on her eyes again, she blinked them away quickly. Dagger sat up pushed the covers back, and made her way to the bathroom. She showered, dried, and then set about her morning routine of getting ready for the long meeting-filled day of the Queen.

Garnet set about the room, looking for something to wear. From the wardrobe she procured a very simple strapless white gown that hugged every curve of her body. The gown split on the left side midway past the thigh, revealing her beautifully long legs and perfectly firm skin.

Feeling she was ready for almost anything (with a few exceptions) she exited the room. Then, as she turned to pull the door shut, a large shadow flew across the window. She gasped, and hurriedly made her way back into the room to the other side, threw open the window, leaned out and looked around for the source of what she had seen.

It wasn't a bird…it wasn't a bird…it was so much more than a bird. It was too large to be a bird. She thought to herself quickly as she hoped she would see some sign of life other than the few robins that fluttered past the window now.

"My queen? Is something the matter?" Asked one of the guards stationed outside of her room.

Dagger took one last fleeting look at the window, turned and made her way for the exit again.

"No, nothing at all, thanks," she answered politely as she passed the guard.

"Yes, your majesty…oh, Lady Beatrix asked me to tell you, your meeting with the Burmecian Prime Minister is about to begin in several minutes, you'd better hurry," warned the guard.

"Yes, alright, I'll be there shortly. Which room was it again?" she asked as she made her way onto the landing outside of the hall where her chambers were located.

"The conference room, off of the east libraries, ma'am," the guard answered as they continued down the stairs together.

"Thank you. Good bye." She said distractedly as she though of the flash outside of her window.

Garnet turned the corner into the entrance hall; where she made her way down the stairs onto the highly polished marble floor. She then went left, into the libraries, and then past the large oak double doors into the conference room.

"Ah, your majesty, good to see you this morning. We were beginning to wonder if you would ever join us." The plump little Burmecian politician stood smiling happily.

"Hello Knutr, I apologize for my tardiness I…well I am here, let us begin, shall we?" She said with the utmost queenly etiquette. Dagger stepped around the long table, where seated: were two accounts comparing notes, a recorder taking minutes, Steiner and Beatrix, two structural engineers, Doctor Tot, acting historian, the Burmecian PM, a Burmecian General, a Burmecian architect and the Burmecian's secretary of treasury.

She took her seat at the head of the table, a large window behind her facing east, the morning sun beaming in, silhouetting her.

"We are here today, seeking help from our neighboring Kingdom of Alexandria, for funding and manpower. Both of which will be used to further the reconstruction of Burmecia."

"Yes, and how much more funding do you require?" one of the accountants asked quickly.

"Well, to be safe, several million more Gil, we must continue ordering our building products from Lindblum. They can no longer give supplies away, it's creating quite a dent in their already poor economy from the attacks two years ago…" The Prime Minister continued speaking but Dagger heard not a word.

The Queen did not see him speak, she could not her him speak. All that she saw, all that filled her senses, was the shadow now lying across the table. The shadow had an overly large head, from the long hair that fell to its shoulders. Large rectangles rose out of the wrists of gloved hands, the hips that the hands were resting upon had odd boxy shapes protruding from the thighs, then the shadow blended in with the back of her chair.

Dagger continued to stare at it, wishing it not to be there, then a tail flicked out from behind the body.

In one swift motion Garnet pushed her chair back from the table and spun in a flash. But nothing stood before the window. A few clouds were passing over the sun throwing down large shadows across Alexandria.

"Is something the matter, your highness?" Beatrix asked worriedly as she stood from her seat.

Garnet continued to gaze out of the empty window, "No…no nothing…I have to— I must—excuse me." She stuttered dazedly.

The Queen stood, looked around the conference room and said "Please continue with the meeting, I shall return momentarily, excuse me." She quickly and gracefully made her way to the door perpendicular to the long rectangular table; then opened the door and exited the room, and as soon as it was closed, she tore into a sprint. She quickly passed tables full of shocked scholars. Dagger paid no mind to their cries of shock and protest; she dashed up the stairs on the left and then out of the main doors of the castle. Careful not to stray too far out, otherwise the conference room occupants would notice her, she stared around hopefully for some sign of the shadowed figure from earlier.

Nothing. Nothing at all. I'm such a fool! She thought angrily to herself. There was no sign of the figure she had clearly seen upon the table. Not a boot print, not ruffled grass, no strand of long dirty blonde hair, not a flick of a tail around a corner, nothing.

It was a sign…that's it. It was a sign of some kind…something…someone is telling me he's here. Someone is telling me to look for him. That's it. She told herself hopefully, I just have to go find him…he's here…he's here in Alexandria.

Garnet turned and sprinted up the stairs, and all the way back to her room. She tore off the gown she had previously been wearing, hurried to the wardrobe and began groping about in it, in her underwear.

Finally, Dagger was able to part the many dresses, there hanging at the back of the wardrobe, orange coveralls with a low cut and strapped top, a white blouse, and a pair of pointed brown ankle high boots sitting below the outfit on the floor of the wardrobe.

Dagger ripped the outfit out of the wardrobe and quickly snatched the boots from the floor. She sat on the bed, pointed her legs and pulled the orange overalls up to her waist, she stood and picked up the blouse from the bed, she pulled it over her head and then slipped her arms through the straps. There were large lumps on the inside of her left and right hips now.

Garnet slipped the boots on quickly and then reached inside of the overalls for the thing that created the lump. On the left side were two brown strapped gloves that she quickly donned, and on the right side a silver clamp for her long, sleek and dark hair.

The Queen pulled the tiara from her head, and set it reverently upon the bed side table, she pulled the pins from her and then pulled her hair back with both hands, then she quickly clamped the silver piece low onto her hair.

Garnet was about to leave when she passed in front of a mirror, she couldn't help but stop to look at herself, she was almost unrecognizable without the same hair, the same headpiece, the familiar gown…she had finally made her transformation from Queen back into Dagger…

But everyone will know…she thought doubtful of the plan now…the cloak! The slipped back over to the wardrobe and pulled out a familiar white silk cloak, repaired from the damage set upon it two years previously from a wayward fire attack. No one had seen it in two years…who would remember that small detail? She slipped it on and very covertly made her way out of the room.

Dagger could no longer escape the castle through the main entrance, she continued directly through the hall and to the outdoor throne balcony, where no guards were situated. Her newly donned cloak trailing in her wake she ran down the short staircase and in front of the throne she noticed that the large Alexandrine banner hanging from the balcony, which was bolted down to keep the massive tapestry from falling to the ground.

The young queen sat upon the edge of the balcony and swung her legs over the edge, she rolled over onto her stomach and then edged her way down the tapestry, keeping a firm grip of a fold she quickly half slid, half rappelled down the tapestry.

Dagger ran past the seats and then over to the unused public stage entrance. This was the entrance all the nobles and townspeople used to enter the castle for the performances held at the castle. It would be unguarded at this time.

Sadly, and undoubtedly, however, it had been secured She looked around the high rampart then she spotted it…unused scaffolding had been left up from the reconstruction of the castle.She smiled to herself at the carelessness of her subjects…but they're not bad people…when was the last time you heard of a murder in Alexandria?

Garnet carefully climbed the ramparts and then edged her way along the battlements to where the scaffolding sat, unused. Quickly, she dragged herself up over the side of the battlements, and onto the scaffolding. She looked around for a way off, an exit, she spotted an unused ladder lying across the top of the scaffolding. However the ladder seemed too short to be able to reach the ground from where she stood.

Dagger thought quickly, she picked up the heavy wooden ladder and threw it down between the scaffolding and the nearest roof. Using her arms to balance herself she carefully made her way across the somewhat unsteady ladder. When she was a foot away she made a slight hop to the roof, wishing no longer to be on the rickety old ladder.

He'd be so proud of me, she thought to herself childishly as she thought of the time Zidane wished she weren't a princess.

There was no other way down at this point however…she walked to the side of the roof, the side she chose rested on a narrow cobblestone alley. She got onto her stomach once more and edged her way down onto a close drainpipe. Slowly but surely she inched her way onto the pipe, finally her entire body was resting upon it, nearly fifteen feet off the ground She allowed her self to slide, inch by inch, down the ground. Finally after a few anxious minutes of the small slips, her feet touched firm ground.

Ok this chapter was too long for what happened. NOTHING. I've just now set you up for the drastic crap that happens in the next few chapters; if you wish to write in ideas for the next chapter, feel free. Please leave a review…those make me feel special…private messages make me feel special too but just not on the same level as a review…cries.


	4. Chapter 4

If you all hate me…that's good. You should feel that way, I abandoned you few loyal readers for four months, and jus to fill you in and let you know, I had a job that took up a _lot_of my time. But have no fear, have no fear; I have just recently been _fired _from said job. Because one customer was a jackass and one complaint got me fired. So I'm going to apologize as best I can for leaving you, but I have returned, and the story shall resume. So here goes. Again; I'm sorry for leaving.

Garnet's boots clicked crisply on the wet cobblestones of the deserted alley. She looked around at her surroundings and then looked up at the sky thoughtfully, wondering if this was the best decision. She sighed and took a quick sweeping look at the garbage lined up against the sides of large, yet modest homes. From brooms, wooden pails, and an old tattered leather boot; to a broken picture frame without a portrait, and a pair of boards lashed together all gave a very peculiar feeling of nostalgia. She took a final glance and continued on her way down the alley onto a sunlit boulevard.

Garnet had made it just several steps when she jumped quite abruptly. A heavy tin can had fallen and clattered noisily upon the surface of the alley, and a tail had flitted around the corner of the house on the right.

"Oh dear God," she whispered to herself.

Garnet took several strides to the alleyway entrance and looked about the boulevard left and right. She decided finally to go right, and with the street so empty this early in the morning, she sprinted. Every alleyway she passed she glanced down, a terrified look on her face, her heart bounding in her chest.

Dagger continued sprinting down the street, dodging the occasional pedestrian, and hoping for some glimpse of her quarry. Just as she reached an intersecting street her prayers were answered. A shadow from above blotted out the sun.

Dagger looked quickly toward the roof of the building on her right. Her eyes bore into the black silhouette above her, but the sun behind it obscured her vision. She blinked and looked down to try to correct her eyesight, but when she looked up again he was gone.

Garnet rushed around the corner onto the intersecting street, hopped quickly up onto the stoop of the nearest house and dashed straight through the doorway. She had burst in on a small family sitting down for breakfast, "Sorry!" she panted as she looked around for a way up to the roof. The family, with bewildered looks upon their faces, was seated on her left under a balcony. She looked right and noticed a small wrought iron spiraling staircase. She took several strides to the staircase and took it up two steps at a time.

At the top, to her left, was a window facing the intersecting street. She ran to the window wrenched it open, and then crawled out onto the awning above the door. After a few short seconds she was out of the window and racing across rooftops for the second time that day. She continued hopping from rooftop to rooftop and searching for anything in the alley.

Then suddenly, there, a figure cloaked in shadows was sprinting along with Dagger in the alleyway below. She followed the movements of the figure closely and subconsciously leaped across the rooftops. She instantly jumped, and she automatically dodged pipes and chimneys.

Dagger did everything to continue on her way; all the while keeping her eyes glued to the mysterious figure that haunted and toyed with her. Garnet was moving so quickly that she never felt her feet touch the surface of the roofs. Then, without warning, the figure took a turn that Garnet wasn't expecting. Without thinking, without hesitation, and with the adrenaline pumping through her veins, she suddenly leapt from the rooftop, sailed through the air and landed roughly on a drainpipe from the next building across the alley. She kept her feet on the wall, gained a firm grip on the pipe, and quickly slid to the alleyway below.

Dagger glanced around at her surroundings, she was again at an intersection of two alleys, and took a left down the shadowy walkway. She continued down this way rather uncertainly, searching futilely for where her target. After a while, she realized she was backtracking and going in circles. She finally stopped back at the original intersection, placed her back to the wall, slumped to the ground, and began to cry.

Garnet shook her head and sobbed at her antics, running from a meeting with the Burmecian Prime Minister, escaping her own castle, sprinting down streets, breaking into homes, gallivanting across rooftops! She felt so foolish; chasing something she_ knew_ she should_know _wasn't there. In a flash she raised her arms and struck herself in the head twice with the balls of her hands. On the third strike she held the balls of her hand to her forehead. Then her body began to tremble from oncoming sobs.

The young queen slid against the side of the house, fell onto her side, and wrapped her arms around her body. She curled into a ball and rocked herself, sobbing, with the face of Zidane filling her mind: his roguish looks, his devilish smile, his dazzling blue eyes, and his bright laughter.

Thinking of all of this did nothing to help her situation.

But quite suddenly everything felt better, she could feel the sun on her face, she felt very warm, the whole situation suddenly felt different, it all felt…light.

"Hey, c'mon now Dagger…what's the matter, huh?" the sweet voice wondered. She sobbed even harder with the bright light like the Sun upon her face, warming her.

"Why are you here crying on the ground?" the voice asked, this time laying a large, yet gentle, hand on her shoulder. Garnet did nothing to get rid of it, but continued to lie on the ground sobbing, squeezing her eyes shut and attempting to block out the not-so-long-forgotten voice.

"Just get up, it'll all be okay, alright?" the voice urged soothingly. The hand pulled on her shoulder. Dagger continued to sob and pulled against the hand that insisted on bringing her to her feet.

"Dagger, listen to me. Get. Up." The voice grunted with effort now, and Dagger could feel herself being pulled up into a sitting position, and now she could no longer ignore it. The heat from the sun was beating down on her face, her sobs were dying down, and she looked up and opened her eyes.

Immediately she was cold again. Dagger found herself sitting against the building in the alleyway, in shadow. She looked about and no one was near her, nothing was there. Dagger gave a small sniffle, and pushed herself up against the building. She sighed, and after wiping away the tears and brushing the grime off of her overalls she continued down the alley to another street.

Dagger gazed at her feet as she stumbled down the street leading away from Alexandria Castle. Passing a young pair of hippos, a couple of kids playing cards, a bar, and as she passed an old woman and a small girl the child cried, "Look Gwanny! It's deh pwincess!" the girl's grandmother shushed her and took her back inside the small house.

Garnet's face remained void of emotion as she made her way into the village green; a small courtyard of cobblestones with the statue of Alexandria's youngest general in the very center. Two guards on post at the entrance did an about face, and took perfectly measured and precise steps into opposite positions in front of the entrance.

A tiny couple chased each other, staring with disbelief at the princess whom no one else seemed to recognize. A small boy chased his cat around the square, and a few other children played a game of cards. Dagger gazed, entranced, at the exit of the city, a way to break free from the monotony of royal life, a chance to seek freedom, an opportunity…for _adventure_.

Dagger took a deep breath and looked around the courtyard filled with people living happy, uninterrupted lives. People whose dreams weren't filled with monumental mistakes or missing loved ones calling out in the night. No one knew of the misery that her life had become in such a short period of time, because of her longing for one thief, one man who had come into her life in a time that now felt millennia past.

She continued to stare with longing at her chance at escape, and then turned away, downtrodden. A shadow flicked above her and she looked up to see a Trick Sparrow soaring high in the sky, she followed it and turned to watch it fly into the distance, into the horizon, into the unknown, into freedom.

The Trick Sparrow flew out of her sight and disappeared behind one of the towers on either side of the entrance, and there below the arch, a man had his back to Dagger. She thought nothing of it until she noticed the small ponytail extending from under his long shaggy hair. She noticed the blue vest; with his hands on his hips she saw the large cuffs and gloves. His pants with the odd rectangles in the thighs, the boots much too large for the legs, that scabbard with the hilt of a dagger protruding, and above all, the tail extending through his pants.

Dagger gazed at the figure, seeing but not wanting to believe. Everything up until this point had been a disappointment, a wild goose chase. Everything she had done today, she had chased shadows, she had burst through homes, she was spooked by cats jumping off of garbage bins, and she even imagined herself being pulled up by some mysterious being that wasn't even _there_.

But she couldn't resist, she longed so to see the one person she had ever truly loved with all of her heart. She had to see him, touch him, smell his scent; she needed so badly to be with him, she couldn't hold back.

Dagger made her way slowly and cautiously toward the figure across the courtyard, making quite sure not to blink and to stay focused upon the figure or he might disappear as quickly as he had appeared. The figure scratched his head and looked up at the sky and at this movement Dagger burst into a sprint, faster than she had ever moved before.

She was now by the statue, she continued sprinting; she was near the guards. Dagger was mere feet away, she could have reached out her hand and touched him, and just as she was about to, an Alexandrian walked directly into her path.

Dagger dodged quickly to the right and spun to avoid hitting the man, her momentum carried her backward and she fell onto her back. The man was seriously flustered and the guards came to check on the commotion.

"Is there a problem here?" asked one of the guards as she held out a hand to help Garnet to her feet.

"Oh! Um…no ma'am. No problem here, I was just lo—" Garnet thought quickly, "…er…I was out for a run, wasn't paying attention to where I was going." She lied.

"I should say so!" the man barked "These Lindblum tourists aren't used to the slow pace of Alexandria! It's run here, fly there, get on the aircab to there, buy this, buy that, sell this, dash here, never a moment of peace with those people!" the man raged.

"Sir, calm down, nothing happened, you can go on your way." The other guard ordered.

The man grumbled and continued on his leisurely stroll down the street and into the bar on his right.

"Don't worry about him, he's always like that to Lindblum tourists." The other guard smirked sadly and shook her head, then their expressions each changed at once.

"Your Majesty!" they cried simultaneously, "We had no idea!" the bowed deeply.

Garnet panicked, her cover had been blown somehow, she quickly sought a pretext, "Er…uh, what? No, no, no, girls you have it all wrong! I get that quite a lot back here! I'm just a…um…look-alike that ad-agencies use as a substitute for the real Queen Dag—Garnet." Dagger's mind was racing, she had to get out of here, she had to find the man standing by the entrance, she had to find Zidane, "I mean, c'mon she's beautiful but I don't think she would model." She scoffed and hoped her look of mock skepticism would get them off of her trail.

One of the guards pulled a face and turned to her partner, "You fool! I told you it looked nothing like the Queen."

The other guards face contorted into one of outrage at the insult, "You said no such thing! Don't try to make yourself look better in front of this nice young lady!"

"Sure, I told you it wasn't her, live with it." The first guard replied.

"You did not!" the other accused loudly.

The argument quickly progressed into a shouting match with each guard looking as though she would pull out her weapon.

"Um…" Dagger started shyly. "Excuse me!" she interjected into the argument, "sorry to interrupt but I'm on a…very strict training schedule, can I get back to my run?"

"Sure go ahead." The first guard answered rather snottily.

"Have a nice day." The second said, still staring intensely at her partner.

Garnet turned and looked about quickly about for the man who had been standing at this same location just seconds before. A grimace fell across her face as she realized he had never been there. She had been foolish again!

"What the hell?!" she cried loudly, anger evident on her face.

"Is something wrong?" the first guard asked her, startled.

Dagger looked around, confused. "Wha—oh no, I just…rolled my ankle. From falling. It hurts but I think I can continue on my run, have a nice day!" She said and began the trek out of the capital and onto the plateaus and mountaintops of Alexandria.

"Be careful out there!" the second guard called to her from the gate

"I told you she didn't look like the queen." The first guard said again.

"…Don't go there. Just don't go there." The second replied with a vacant expression on her face.

Dagger began at a run, running anywhere. Running nowhere. She had no place to go, she had no way of finding where Zidane might be, and soon her run turned into a job, and then even more quickly she was walking. She hadn't seen the world like this in years, lately it had only been from windows, or the courtyard of her castle, or the deck of an airship, but not for a long while had she strolled in meadows, or gazed at the tallest peaks of mountains.

However, there was one major difference between now, and the traveling times of years past.

She was alone. There was no Vivi tripping, no Steiner shouting about scoundrels and thieves, no Amarant brooding, no Eiko stating the absolute obvious in her adorably immature way. There was no Freya making threats, Quina wasn't begging for food, and not least of all, there was no Zidane. Nobody making decisions now, nobody to follow now, no one to comfort her, to make her laugh or annoy her.

She was alone.

This probably isn't like…the greatest place to _end_ a chapter, but I've got stuff in store for next chapter that I've been given ideas for, but I can't remember who gave me the ideas so if you'd like to e-mail me and tell me it was you, I will give you due credit, because this story is just as much yours as it is mine. You're all helping me write it and keeping it going, so until next time, give me more reviews, and more ideas, I will _definitely_ consider your idea, I don't just throw ideas away, yours might be the basis for chapter 6, while someone, who I can't remember, has already given me the ideas for chapter 5.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy IX…but I wish I owned Nobuo Uematsu for writing such insanely amazing music.

The Aircab shuddered and hissed to a halt inside the station. The ramp whirred into life then quickly clanked into place. The doors opened and Vivi made his way out into the glittering new Aircab station. It resembled what it had two years ago. Odd mist and steam machines here and there, a neatly laid cobblestone floor, benches, bulletin boards, the pedestrians and the smartly dressed station attendant gave Vivi a strong feeling of nostalgia.

Vivi made his way to the exit and left the station. He stepped into the bright light of the Lindblum morning, he looked to the blue sky buzzing with airships, took a deep breath of the crisp morning air and sighed peacefully. He turned right to go up the street, to the city center and beyond. He passed trees, branches full with leaves; newly constructed houses and businesses; tired tourists and citizens starting a new day, and other familiarities that gave him the strange feeling of returning to a loved one long missed.

As Vivi strolled down the main street his mind was filled with thoughts of Dagger, the Queen; the Princess. The Princess who had, not so long ago, helped him battle through fear, doubt and confusion to discover who he really was. He also thought of Zidane, his fearless leader, the head of his adopted family. Everyone had become his family, particularly Zidane and Dagger. Both encouraging him, looking after him, caring for him; the way Quan had done. Vivi missed each of them very much.

Vivi had never truly given up hope that Zidane might still be alive. While Vivi was in Black Mage Village he led the team of skilled Mages that worked to develop a way to lengthen the life of the Mages. They were by no means immortal but their lives now lasted longer than ever before. Then once a week, after the experiments and team meetings had finished for that day, Vivi would trek to Conde Petite, then along the Mountain Path all the way to the Iifa Tree.

On these days Vivi would go and sit at the edge of the crater. Vivi had initially come here to meditate. He knew it was one of the reasons for all the misery of his life but he had learned to overcome that. The Iifa tree had become a peaceful sentinel guarding the coasts of the continent, here he could think, and experiment on his own, and he would remember back to the bygone days of traveling with his friends

Then one day while sitting near the tree it moved. Two years earlier the tree had torn its roots from the ground and on that day it had shaken itself to let some of its large leaves drift lazily to the floor of the crater. From that day on Vivi continued to go to the Tree once a week, but now he would keep a watch for any movement, any movement at all. He was often surprised by what usually ended up being a bird, or a falling leaf. Using a sight enhancing spell he would pay particularly close attention to the base of the still standing tree. Usually, after an average of roughly five hours of uneventful searching, meditating, and pondering Vivi would return to his home in the Village.

While remembering all this Vivi had continued walking, in somewhat of a daze and straight into a young woman. She had red hair and was wearing a white blouse, with a tweed vest, and a simple white skirt. Vivi was startled, he jumped and fell onto his rear.

"Oh!" the young woman yelped. She turned to see the young mage push himself up off of the ground and wipe his pants off.

"Oh geez, sorry, I should've been paying more attention to where I was walking." Vivi apologized uncertainly.

"It's no problem, no problem at all, don't worry about it." The woman furrowed her brow and asked, "Say, haven't I seen you before?" the woman asked as she crouched to pick up the box of nails and a hammer from the ground. She stepped back to admire her work. The newly hung gold letters read clearly and brightly _Alice's Potion Shop, _on the right side of the front door.

Vivi glanced at the words and realization hit him, "Yeah! I was in here a bunch of times a couple years ago. Oh! That reminds me, do you have anymore Kupo nuts?" Vivi asked excitedly, "They smell really nice."

"That's right, I remember now, you entered into the Festival of the Hunt. Are you here to participate again?" she grabbed the handle of the door and entered her shop while speaking, motioning with her hand for him to follow.

"Um…no," Vivi answered; remembering his subpar showing in the festival, "I'm staying here with a few good friends for a couple of days. We were in Alexandria to see 'I Want to be Your Canary' and she invited us over." He answered while distractedly searching for Kupo nuts.

"Uh-huh." She mumbled as she stooped to place to the nails on a shelf behind the counter. "Kupo Nuts are to your left." She directed him out of the corner of her eye as she searched for something on the shelf on the wall behind her.

Vivi's eyes lit up when he spotted them; he held the jar lightly between his small hands and walked over to the counter to pay.

"Oh that's alright, it's on me. That's the last one and I'm getting another shipment tomorrow, go ahead, it's fine." She said smiled happily as she said it.

"Really? Gee, thanks!" he cried happily as he opened the jar, the odor quickly reaching his nostrils. Vivi breathed deeply, "Boy this brings back memories, thanks a lot" he sighed dreamily making his way to the door, "bye!" He said as he took another deep breath of the delicious aroma.

Vivi stepped out of the door into the bright Lindblum morning. He took a step down the stoop and a voice rang out to his left.

"There he is! That's him, go get 'em!" the voice echoed inside the metal helm.

Vivi swung around quickly and spotted two Lindblum soldiers charging at him. Vivi's heart bounded in his chest, he became very nervous. The jar slipped from his hands and shattered on the steps. Vivi scrambled down the steps to stop the Kupo Nut from rolling away.

"Halt!" The guards called together. Vivi stooped for his Kupo Nut at the bottom of the stairs and snatched it up, he stood hunched, clutching the Nut and looking up at the guards with his big green eyes. "Are you Master Vivi Ornitier?"

"Y-Yeah. What's going on?" Vivi wondered cautiously looking between the guards.

The guards each took an arm in hand and led him away from the store "Our orders are to escort you to the castle, you're headed back to Alexandria."

"What's going on?!" Vivi asked loudly pulling out of their grasp. The guards stopped in their tracks and turned. The taller guard raised his hands and spread his fingers wide.

"General Steiner of Alexandria has requested an audience with you and Lady Eiko's party. The Queen has gone missing." The guard said in a way to show he meant no harm.

The doors to the Aircab jerked open and Vivi rushed out, followed closely by the two soldiers. His short legs carried him quickly down the stairs and around the corner into the main hangar where the Hilde Garde III was docked. Vivi dashed through the foyer and skidded to a halt within the elevator. Without waiting for the guards Vivi flipped the switch and ascended into the upper part of the castle.

The gates to the elevator squeaked open, Vivi gasped in a lungful of air and raced down the hallway to the conference room.

"What happened? What's going on? Where'd Dagger go?" Vivi asked quickly. Steiner looked away from Freya to Vivi, Eiko and Freya turned together and Amarant glanced over his shoulder.

"Master Vivi it's good to see you again." Steiner replied formally.

"Ah he's finally arrived! I'd be happier about seeing you if the situation wasn't so sobering." Cid commented from his throne.

"What took ya huh? We've been waiting on you bub." Eiko said playfully.

"It's fine Eiko, come along Vivi, we'll tell you what we know on the way to Alexandria. Let's get going." Freya replied quickly and calmly as she turned from the table and made her way to the door.

Freya stepped away from the table, made her way to the door and Vivi followed. Steiner side stepped the end of the table and continued after them, Cid stood and trailed after the others and Amarant and Eiko followed suit. They all entered the elevator and then Steiner began to speak.

"Earlier today there was a small meeting between the Burmecian PM, Princess Garnet and a few other Burmecians and Alexandrines." Steiner began without correcting himself. "Garnet entered the meeting nearly twenty minutes behind schedule and then not even five minutes later she excused herself from the meeting. The meeting continued on without the Queen. It was a two hour long meeting mind you. Without the Princess present we exchanged Gil and goodwill with the Burmecians who promptly made haste for Lindblum minutes after the meeting concluded." Steiner paused and the others waited for him to continue.

"General Beatrix went back to the Princess's quarters to check on her, she thought maybe her dismissal from the meeting might have been due to her hallucinations from the night before." Steiner pushed on, the others nodded with understanding. "However when Beatrix entered the room the Princess was nowhere to be found. She thought nothing of it and left the room to continue the search on the roof. The Princess has been spending much of her time up there lately, thinking we think, maybe searching."

"Searching?" Vivi cut in to the briefing as the elevator continued down to the mid level of the castle.

"For Zidane of course! Isn't it obvious?" Eiko threw her hands into the air.

The elevator came to a halt and the party filtered out through the foyer and then onto the bridge of the Hilde Garde III where Erin was waiting patiently with her crew.

"Anyways," Steiner continued as they took their places around the bridge to listen, "where was I? Oh right, Beatrix went to search the roof and I made my way to search the outdoor throne room and no one was there. At that point I ordered every guard in the castle to search for the Princess, after that I then ordered the Knights of Pluto go into the city to inform the guards and then begin their own search of the city." Steiner paused took several steps down the stairs to the wind shield and turned around to address the group again, their silence urging him on. "We searched all over the city, asked some citizens if they knew anything, and soon learned that the Princess had passed into the square about two hours earlier. A young girl who was accompanied by her grandmother said she had seen the Princess walking slowly toward the square. That's where the trail runs cold."

"So is she still in Alexandria?" Eiko asked the question that everyone seemed ready to ask.

"We don't know, Alexandrine soldiers are searching every nook and cranny of the city for the Princess and keeping an eye out for her on the grounds of the castle. There is no sign of her." 

During Steiner's briefing the crew had maneuvered the airship out of the dock and had it steaming towards the Falcon Gate.

Freya took a sweeping glance at Lindblum from the airship, she turned and went back up the stairs to stand near Vivi. "So what's our plan then?" she asked as she turned back around.

"Find the Princess and return her to the castle." Steiner replied.

"Easier said than done." Amarant scoffed.

"True," Steiner said calmly, agreeing with the man for once, he seemed too calm, "all too true. We have no motives, we have no trail…we have nothing."

"Then _what _is the plan?" Freya asked again, a little annoyed.

Steiner looked between the four others and tried not to make eye contact. He turned around and looked out the windshield, his hands folded behind his back. He turned back around to the others, a vacant expression on his face.

"I don't k now."

The others looked between themselves while Steiner looked out the window once more; they'd never seen the knight act this way. When the Princess was in trouble he couldn't contain himself. For once he was quiet and reserved. He seemed heartbroken. Freya made the first move, she moved away from the railing and stepped down the stairs and stood next to Steiner.

The Burmecian Dragon Knight stood next to the Alexandrine General and said nothing for a while, as Vivi, Eiko, looked between themselves and Amarant stood impatiently against a wall waiting for something to happen. Finally Cid, who had been listening intently to the conversation all the while, spoke.

"Now listen here. This is not the time for skepticism or hopelessness!" Cid scolded them, "you've all been in tighter more dire situations and found a way out somehow! How difficult could finding a princess, we know to be in the vicinity of Alexandria, possibly be?"

Eiko turned to her adoptive father and protested, "Things were different back then father!" she paused, "…back then…back then we had Zidane." 

Cid heard her response and seemed ready to explode, Vivi looked between the two and by now Steiner and Freya had come around to listen.

"You honestly believe Zidane could have made the decisions he did without some sort of motivation?! He wasn't always a brilliant leader you know! He was a crook, a scoundrel, a thief. He was a lowly bandit in an acting troupe! Not until he met this group and the Princess did he care about another person! Two years ago when Gaia plunged into war he would've sat back in Lindblum not caring about the rest of you or anything except himself and where he was going to live!" Cid took a deep breath from his rant and then continued."He took things as they came! He never gave up and said it was too much, not once did he call it quits!" Cid barked.

"That's not true!" Eiko cried, tears in her eyes, "you weren't with us on Terra! You didn't see what we all saw! You never heard what he said to us!" Eiko was in tears, she was fighting to hold back sobs. She was ashamed for attacking Zidane, for bringing up the past, for a time which Zidane apologized countless times for.

Finally Amarant said something other than grunt and shake his head, "The dimwit had no clue what he was doing. But when he made a decision he stuck to it. That's what he always did. He did it for Vivi, for Garnet, bear Steiner's crap, hell he even made a decision to help me. He helped out each and every one of us in some way, oh and not to mention he made a conscious decision to save the world."

Then Vivi took the stage and addressed everyone, "Cid and Amarant are right. He wouldn't be without hope, and he certainly would never give up. We've gotta find Dagger." Then Vivi said something no one was expecting, "and we've got to find Zidane."

"That's madness! How are we supposed to find him? It's been two years and no one has seen a thing he's probably dead!" Steiner finally broke out.

"What's the difference? We've all accepted he's dead but we need proof for Dagger!" Vivi shouted back, raising his own voice.

"True. Very true. Master Vivi your wisdom shows through once again." Cid smiled to him.

"Then where do we start? Dagger or Zidane?" Freya asked the group as a whole.

The others pondered this, and then one of the crew members who had been listening gave his own input.

"Uh…excuse me, if you don't mind me saying so…but…why don't you split up?" the man asked them.

The others looked around; they seemed to be in mutual agreement that separating and searching would be best.

"I'll search for the Princess." Steiner said first; stepping forward as if hoping Garnet would give him approval herself.

Eiko jumped down the short staircase and ran to Steiner's side, "I'll go with you!" she wanted nothing more than to know her best friend was safe.

"I'll try to find out wha—."

"I'll start the search for Zidane at the Iifa tree!" Vivi cut Freya off. Freya smiled at the small mage.

"I'll join you my friend." Freya said to Vivi.

The mage smiled, though she could not see it, and nodded toward her,

"Well what about you Amarant? What are you going to do?" Cid tilted his head as he asked the bandit.

Amarant stayed quiet, thinking on the question for several seconds then said, "I'll go to Treno and use my connections to try and find something out. Everyone everywhere knows about Zidane and the rest of us, they all know what happened. Someone is likely to know something."

The Airship sank rapidly through the air about twenty feet, everyone felt their stomachs rise into their chests and grabbed for something to hold on to.

"Sorry! I forgot to tell you!" Erin apologized quickly, "we're back in Alexandria my friends, and we're making our final approach now."

Ok I'm really sorry this took so long but NOW is when you need to send those e-mails to decide what happens next! I can't do this without you! Thanks to **kitty00240, kravlin, Unsavory Charlatan, MysticSpiritus, KurosawaSae** for the ideas for chapter 4, **Tony WildRiver, ** and **Roxas, **for all of the reviews, thanks so much. I would also like to say thanks to my _amazing _beta** Undeniable Mystique **for all her help with each and every chapter. Keep reading, the story isn't finished. I need your ideas! The story can only continue with **YOUR **help! So **SEND **those e-mails to **ME **at 


	6. Chapter 6

Ok, if you hate me…I…I really deserve it. 5 months. FIVE MONTHS! I'm _sorry_! I got busy again…and my computer blew up! My Power supply shorted out, exploded (not exaggerating) and fried my motherboard. I'm computer-less. Thank God I'm only 16 and live with my parents. I'll stop making excuses now. About two months ago I was given a brilliant idea by a reader on what to write, and now we're going to continue. Honestly I feel like crying because I haven't written and because I abandoned you…again. I'm sorry. I am so sorry!

By the way, I don't even own a Chinchilla…is there anyway that I can change my stupid pen name?

Never mind; let's get to some readin', eh!?

Disclaimer: Square Soft owns FFIX.

P.S. Square Soft was better than Square Enix.

**In Addition: **I would like to thank **Tony Wildriver** for his friggen_ brilliant(!!)_ ideas for this chapter! Thanks a lot Tony!

**One final note: **This chapter ended up being 12 pages long in Word so…please, just try and read it. If it's not actiony enough for you then leave a review telling me how I should write more interesting action. Honestly, I need ideas to keep the story moving and I'm sorry I haven't updated in a long, long, long, long, long, time.

Please enjoy…please.

The airship buzzed loudly overhead and dust whipped around the hull. Eiko and Steiner had flown to the Outer Continent to see off Freya and Vivi; Amarant had already been left in Treno. The two would begin their search here, at the Iifa tree. Erin held the ship steady and hovering nearly twenty feet above edge of the crater. The group left the cabin and made their way to the starboard side of the deck where a crewmember eagerly awaited their arrival.

The crewman pulled a lever and a rope ladder unraveled quickly over the side and stopped just inches from the arid ground below.

"Master Vivi!" Steiner called hardily over the cacophony of the engines and winds, making his way toward the mage, "be careful down there Master Vivi! The Iifa tree may not be the same Necron villain on the inside, but the defenses and monsters are!"

"Uh…yeah! Thanks for the um…tip!" Vivi called, a bit perplexed and a little happier, the idea of a battle, and an adventure, appealed to the young mage.

"Be careful, Vivi!" Eiko moved forward and hugged the young mage just before he climbed over the side, trembling, and began his way down the wobbly ladder.

"Freya! My comrade in arms! Fight well, my friend!" Steiner patted her roughly on the back and stood back to allow the Dragon Knight space to jump to the desert floor below.

As she lifted into the air with a stupendous leap she could hear Eiko calling out below, "_Bring him back!_"

Freya landed several seconds before Vivi hopped off of the ladder, a puff of yellow-orange dust coating his small boots. The two of them stood back and watched as the ladder was reeled in and the ship took off, Steiner's shining gauntlet waving from high above.

The two looked at each other, then to the Iifa tree.

"Well, Freya…how do you think we should get down?" Vivi wondered, not taking his eyes off of the base of the tree.

Freya looked away from the tree and down at Vivi. He returned the gaze. "How do you feel about being carried?" she asked, her mouth drawn in a way to convey that it was the only other choice.

Vivi's eyes seemed to dim, the young mage sighed, "Whatever works…I guess." He said with a small laugh.

Freya stooped and lifted the mage and allowed him to climb onto her shoulders. "Hold on tight n—." was all she could get out before Vivi clamped down on her face. The Dragon Knight leaped high into the air with the small mage on her shoulders screaming louder than she had ever heard him before.

Freya jumped down at varying intervals, wherever the rocky sides of the crater would allow her to land. She jumped down again, and again. Now nearly 150 feet from the crater floor she jumped again and landed about ten feet below her last jump off point. The rocky outcropping cracked and crumbled beneath her large feet. She screamed with the adrenaline coursing through her veins as she and Vivi tumbled through the air. Freya quickly righted herself and dug her tough clays into the edge of the crater propelling loose rocks and dust through the air.

As she slid down, while Vivi clutched to her face for dear life, and roughly twenty feet from the crater floor, she bent her legs and pushed off with all the effort that she could muster. The two sailed through the air and all was suddenly quiet and still. They both took in the sight of the beautiful tree, the surprisingly lush crater floor below, and the young fields of grass swaying in the winds that penetrated the deep gouge in Gaia's surface.

Freya hit the soft ground with no more than a thud and the two rolled out on the grass in the early morning sun that shone over the crater's rim.

"Two years ago…this would've never been here. Right below us are those big roots…now look what's here…green grass!" Vivi laughed and rolled around in the grass, taking in the fresh scent with a deep breath and a sigh.

Freya smiled at his antics and surveyed their surroundings: the grass drifted lazily; small patches of flowers danced in the breeze, and even small trees had begun to sprout, in this new, lush environment.

Vivi rolled over onto his back and looked up into the Iifa trees foliage hundreds of feet above. "Wow…." He said more to himself than to Freya, "and we thought it was big before...it must be miles wide at the top!"

Freya took another sweeping glance then turned her attention to the man-sized leaves above.

"Come on, Vivi. Let's go try and find a way into the trunk from down here." Freya said, moving toward the tree.

Vivi rolled over onto his stomach, rose to his knees, stood, quickly followed after her, and promptly tripped scattering moths and other forms of debris.

Freya laughed aloud and waited for him to pick himself up and walk beside her.

"Did you see where he entered the tree?" Vivi asked her, his eyes fixed on the trunk.

"No…how about you?" she asked, remaining wary.

"…No." He said, a bit downcast.

"I think I have an idea of where he might have entered, though" Freya began.

"Where's that?" Vivi wondered, coercing her to continue with her own briefing.

"Well…I figure he'd be just a little bit above us….look up, see? This is the highest level of roots. We need to get to where they begin…and I think we might have our best bet there."

The two had stopped walking as Freya explained and motioned with her hands to the trunk of the tree, which widened near the bottom, due to the now limp roots hanging all around the trunk.

Vivi surveyed the area she was motioning to and thought on it for a while, "I think you're right…but I think that the place where he would've found Kuja would be lower…maybe even deeper than the lowest level of roots. Some inner sanction of the tree…somewhere…where Necron's Gaian form would've been during his lifespan, right?"

Freya smiled at the brilliance of the mage beside her, "Do you mind being carried again?"

Vivi shook his head and Freya lifted him onto her shoulders once again and began jumping from point to point to reach the new entrance of the Iifa tree.

After several minutes of the tedious climb the pair finally made it to the top of the roots without incident. Vivi slid down from her shoulders and walked around the roots that jutted out from the massive trunk of the tree.

"Well, let's just try finding an opening…there should be one on this level…right?" Freya asked of Vivi.

"Yeah…actually, know what Freya? I think I might know where it is. I used to come here to uh…meditate, and experiment with spells that would create the duplicates…like my own offspring that you saw." Vivi explained to her, "One day when I was here the tree shook, it sort of…twisted. To drop off dead leaves, I think. Well once that happened I started watching the base of the tree, 'cause I thought that was where the entrance might be…but I was always startled by a group of Sea Gulls that would fly in and out at this level…I think they have nests up here…off to the right. C'mon, follow me!" Vivi said excitedly, leading her around the trunk to where he thought the nests were.

He soon slowed his pace to a walk, however, for fear of falling, and because the magnitude of the tree finally dawned on him.

"Well…we might be walking for a while…" Vivi furrowed his brow beneath his cloudy exterior.

"That's fine…once we're inside we'll be walking for a while anyway." Freya responded, her hands folded behind her head as she looked up into the enormous swaying tree.

The two walked in near silence, everything of interest having been covered the previous night in Lindblum Castle. However, though they were silent the excitement between them was almost tangible. Vivi's small chest swelled with the excitement…and despair. He longed to find Zidane as much as anyone else, but he was still unready for what he might find.

Freya was on feeling nearly the same emotions of Vivi. Her head was filled with Zidane's words, their conversations, and the laughs they had shared on their journey. The two pondered their own moments with Zidane in their minds while trekking around the vast trunk.

For nearly twenty minutes they searched in silence. Suddenly, large white birds began pouring out of the side of the tree as they passed it.

"Ahh!" Vivi, obviously startled, screamed, lost his balance, and slipped down the side of the tree.

"Vivi!" Freya cried as she braced herself against the onslaught of frightened birds.

In seconds the birds were gone, and so was Vivi.

"VIVI!" Freya called out again.

For several seconds there was no response, it felt like an eternity, Freya attempted peering over the edge but couldn't hold herself steady.

"Oh my God…don't let him be dead. He can't be dead. He can't go out this way. He can't die like this." Freya said to herself as she backed up against the trunk away from the edge.

"FREYA!" The call came from below, as if in answer to her prayers, "FREYA! DOWN HERE!" Vivi called frantically to the Dragon Knight.

A new excitement flowed over Freya as she cautiously made her way to the sloping edge. She peaked over the edge to find Vivi dangling from a coat tail on a small branch roughly ten feet below.

Freya thought quickly, she pulled her Holy Lance from over her back, bent over the edge and stabbed it deep into the tree's surface. She kept her grip on the shaft and swung down, almost level with Vivi who was struggling with his rear in the air as he hung from his coat.

"Grab onto my feet I'll pull us both up!" she called down to him.

"A—Alright!" He stuttered and struggled to reach out and grab her large bony ankles.

He finally latched on and called up to her, "Okay! We can go now!" Vivi called, terrified of hanging unsecured from this height any longer.

Freya used her immense strength to pull the two of them up onto the lance. She perched her free foot on the shaft and reached down to pull Vivi up from her left foot. He snatched her hand as it came dangling in front him and was quickly hauled up and once again placed safely on the ledge. Freya held onto the lance and pushed off from the roots, sliding down several feet before launching back up and landing beside Vivi.

"…I hate birds." Freya said to Vivi, whose back was to her, he hadn't heard a word she had said.

"Freya…" Vivi began.

"What is it?" Freya said, still not paying much attention to what Vivi had found so fascinating.

"Freya… come look at this." Vivi said, still in awe, his excitement so much that he could hardly express it.

"What is i—" Freya began, but was silenced at the sight.

Before them lay hundreds of birds' nests.

"Freya! This is it!" Vivi whispered excitedly. The prospect of what lay ahead hit Vivi like a bowling ball and he was instantly silent, eyes wide and bright and mouth, though unseen, hanging open.

Freya took a deep breath and peered into the cave littered with nests, eggs, and thousands upon thousands of molted feathers, "Well we won't find anything by staying on the outside…so let's get going."

Vivi instantly stepped ahead of her, "I'll take the lead, no offense but if light needs to be cast an Auto-Regeneration spell isn't going to do the trick."

Freya smiled at his eagerness, "By all means."

The two of them began down the odd corridor. It twisted and turned in accordance with the movements of hundreds of smaller roots, and soon it started changing, from knobby and twisted to a more designed look. As though someone had, because someone had, built the tree from the inside out: the color changed from a lively green, moss, grass, dirt, things a true tree would have; to a charcoal grey, the floor now had a ribbed washboard look to it, and the walls morphed into a continuous arching tunnel overhead.

Soon the tunnel that twisted and turned became a perfectly straight line, they could see for hundreds of feet down the hall.

"Well…it's a straight shot. Do you think this is the path that Zidane took? I mean…where would Kuja even have teleported back to after Necron was killed?" Vivi asked Freya, keeping his attention focused on the ominous hallway ahead.

"I don't know…but we don't have much of a choice, now, do we?" She answered, also staying focused on the black abyss at the far end of the tunnel.

The two continued a little more cautiously now, not knowing what may lie ahead in this once virulent place.

Between his hands Vivi held a floating orb of light, a weaker form of a thunder spell, which bathed the passage in an intense white light. Freya kept a hand on the shaft of her lance should she need it, and kept a wary eye on their rear.

"What…?" Vivi began running to the end of the tunnel.

"Whoa! Vivi, hold on a second!" Freya called after him, releasing her Lance and pumping her legs to catch up.

Vivi continued running until he was at what caused the disturbance in the first place. Before him, lay a solid wall of roots.

"Wha—why…this…" Vivi could only stutter; pacing back in forth in front of the wall examining it in detail.

Freya had no explanation for the wall, "Well…this obviously isn't the entrance, Vivi."

Vivi stopped pacing midway between the sides of the tunnel and kept his eyes on the dead end, "Wha—why…why is this tunnel even here then? What's the point? What's its purpose?" Vivi wondered, anger boiling up in him, anger from being cheated of their goal.

"Wait a sec, let's try this…" she reached for the lance on her back, and with all of her strength she thrust it into the wall, but it merely glanced off, "Good God! It's stronger than mythril!" she yelped, walking off and checking to make sure her lance tip had not been bent or chipped.

"Can I try something quick?" Vivi wondered. Freya gave an affirmative grunt as she continued to pick at the tip of her lance.

Bright light shone between Vivi's fingers, he spread his hands wide and the orb of lightning grew larger until he thrust his hands forward and sent it streaking into the wall.

The Thundaga spell left Freya momentarily blind, once her vision returned the wall was still intact, all that remained of the spell was a small scorch mark.

"I don't get it. It doesn't make any sense at all." Vivi said, wiping his gloves off on his coat and turning back to Freya whose eyes were still adjusting.

"Come on…let's get out of here. We'll just have to find another entrance." Freya stowed her lance, turned and began to make her way toward the entrance, but Vivi did not follow.

"Hold on," he called; Freya stopped in her tracks and turned back to Vivi, "let me try something else."

The light from Vivi's hands died for a second, and when it reappeared it was orange and flickering. The spell grew in his hands as Vivi whispered strange words to strengthen it. He widened his hands and the fireball expanded between his arms, threatening to scorch his coat and hat.

Vivi made a motion of pushing the attack into the wall, there was a great explosion like thunder, the fireball erupted on the wall, and the tunnel shook with the force of the attack. The attack was quickly extinguished, all was black, yet the tree continued to rumble.

"Um…uh-oh." Vivi said in a small voice, the white light flickering back into existence between his hands.

"What did you do?!" Freya cried, the tree continued to shake, "c'mon, let's get out of here!"

"Sounds good to me!" Vivi yelled, already at her side and quickly passing her.

The tree continued rumbling as the two sprinted down the passage side by side; they were nearing the end of the stretch when suddenly—

_Wham!_

The two were sent reeling from the force of the impact.

"Ow…" Vivi's moan was drawn out as he lay on his back.

"What was that?" Freya wondered in a daze, rising, unsteadily, to her feet.

Vivi hopped back up quickly and reignited his light: Before them lay a twisting and slithering wall, quickly being built by the tree.

"Quick! Cut it down!" Vivi yelled at Freya as he built his Thundaga attack and threw it into the wall. Again, it had no effect, and the wall continued to construct itself.

Freya righted herself, drew her lance and thrust it into the trees twisting tendrils. She pushed down on the shaft, trying to pry a hole in the wall. Her head still spinning from the impact earlier; she didn't notice the blade of her lance being pushed from the wall, and she fell to the hard ground, more than willing to lay there as the snare was tightened and the two were trapped in their newly formed tomb.

Finally the rumbling of the tree stopped, the final root latched into position.

"Well…now what?" Freya said, sitting up against the wall and rubbing her head.

"…What just happened? Why'd the tree react like this? It didn't car about the other attacks only that one."

"Maybe three times the charm…" Freya said, holding her aching temples as though meditating.

"Honestly, Freya, why'd it do this? Now we're never going to find out what happened to Zidane!" Vivi screamed and kicked newly formed wall, trying to relieve his anger.

"Actually…I don't think it was self defense…just a self preservation reaction." Freya said, closing her eyes in the pitch black.

"What do you mean?" Vivi asked, turning in the direction of her voice.

"Well, you used a fire attack, and this is a tree. Naturally, it could burn down…I think it just built the wall to suffocate any type of flame that might exist." Freya said, whose eyes widened in the darkness as realization hit her, "Vivi give us some light, would you?" she asked.

The tunnel was instantly filled with the light white again; Freya was staring directly into Vivi's glowing eyes.

"We don't have much time. We're going to suffocate." Freya informed Vivi, whose eyes seemed to brighten even in the intense light.

"How much time do you think we have?" he wondered.

"Well…we're not in the correct part of the tree to have new oxygen given to us…and it's a fairly long tunnel…I think we have about…a day of oxygen left in here." She said, now standing, and surveying the tunnel for any fault or crack.

"A day?!" Vivi asked, a little stunned, "we gotta get to work!" he said and sped off down the hall to the other wall.

Freya smiled and chased after him. At the far side of the tunnel she found Vivi surveying the wall again. Pushing, pulling, prying, and attempting to find any weak spot in the wall.

"Don't use you anymore Fire spells…we only have a limited supply of air now…" Freya warned him.

"Yeah, I know. I'm just trying to figure out what _would _work." He responded, "ok…I'm gonna try something else, stand back Freya."

Vivi pulled his Mace of Zeus from his back and began reciting the incantations for the Blizzaga spell. Ahead of him, in the pitch darkness a small bead of water formed out of thin air, shining like a sapphire in the black.

Vivi twisted his staff in such a way that the water expanded and soon was flowing into the wall, filling every crevice and orifice in the walls surface. Next he jabbed his staff into the floor. The water betwixt the roots and vines began expanding and shifting the vines little by little.

Another odd twist of the staff and instantly the water transformed into ice; loud tears and visible movement could be seen within the wall, they both became very excited. Freya let a little yelp of glee escape her lips.

Vivi focused to make the ice expand; the roots began to pull away from the wall. Then the tree began to rumble again, and the roots pulled back on the ice, making it crack and shatter. The ice crashed and fell apart before the pair. Freya tried prying at the roots again but to no avail, the wall was even more solid now than it had been before.

"Gah! I hate this tree." Vivi yelled and sat against the wall, the small orb of light hovering over his head now as he controlled with the staff.

"We'll figure something out. Don't worry about it Vivi…we'll figure it out."

"Yeah…" he agreed, taking his focus off of the ball of light and allowing it to fade into nothingness, "I'm going to sleep on it." Making very clear the fact that he was tired from the day's activities.

"Sounds good to me." Freya responded blandly, the day had been long and soon they were both asleep before another word could be spoken

xxx

Vivi awoke with a start to the sound of Freya screaming. Vivi attempted to lift his arms but felt as though he was shackled to the floor. He twisted his hands and the orb of light appeared between them. The site scared and horrified Vivi. The roots were actively attempting to absorb both of them into the tree.

"It thinks we're a threat!" Freya screamed, her arms, and legs bound; a vine around her neck that would soon threaten strangling her.

"Ok! Just…hold on a second!" Vivi scrambled into panic mode. His arms and legs were bound, but his Mace of Zeus lay on his lap just within reach of his left hand. He snatched it up and instantly a bead of water was produced between the two in the center of the hallway. The vines continued pulling in tighter, and soon new ones were appearing and pulling on different sections of the same limb.

Vivi hurriedly whispered the words and the water split into two droplets and expanded, seeping under the roots now threatening to crush his ankles.

Freya coughed on the other side and rasped out, "Hurry, Vivi!" the vines around her neck tightening their grip.

Vivi panicked and the water released and sank into his clothing, "Oh, no!" He quickly repeated the spell and made another bead of water. It split again, and seeped under the roots. Vivi maneuvered the water moving around Freya's neck to the side and lengthened the jelly-water to brace against her chest and side of her head.

"It's gonna get cold Freya, this might hurt a little, are you ready?"

"Yeah!" she coughed out, her face braced against the pain, and the coming pain.

Vivi twisted his rod in his hand and the water turned to ice. The water positioned so that the ice braced against the floor of the tunnel to push against the roots. Freya pushed her head into the ice, trying to break the stranglehold of the root. It worked, the roots around her neck snapped, and the remaining roots were pulled loose enough that the pair could wriggle free.

The roots moved much faster now, the two ran to the scorched wall and watched as the roots slithered toward them.

"Vivi. You have to get that wall open _now_!" Freya told him, panic in her voice as she slashed at the loose roots, cutting some short.

"Uh…um…alright! I have an idea! Keep those roots off of me!" He called as Freya's lance slashed through the air.

Vivi raised his hands and let the bright orb float above his head. Again he raised his Mace of Zeus and suddenly a black veil appeared before him. The black veil started small, and with a rotation of the rod it grew into a large, shadowy ball. Vivi slammed the rod into the ground and suddenly, loud crackling red and yellow bolts of electricity began coursing through the black cloud.

"This tree just won't quit!" Freya yelled, slashing and cutting down more vines and roots. Suddenly a root shot out and constricted her ankle she kept her cool and cut the vine quickly, several more shot out and latched on as well though, "Vivi hurry!" she cried, as she attempted to cut the ropey limbs around her legs.

Vivi did not respond, he released his rod on the unsteady ground and it stood without support. He raised his hands before him and the ball rose between them. He expanded his hands, the ball grew, and then he clapped. The ball shot forward into the mass of roots. Vivi braced himself against the floor and began pushing against the air with all his might. His Demi attack now flowing through the wall.

He pushed first at the lower right corner, then upper left, then to the lower left and upper right in that order. He continued this pattern while Freya continued to cut down the attacking roots.

Finally, after the fourth time through the motions the wall began to unravel, however the force pushing against Vivi became much stronger.

Again the roots shot out against Freya's ankles but this time she dodged them, the roots continued in their path and found their mark on Vivi's own ankles. The roots tightened and pulled him away from the wall, and it immediately began to shrink back into place.

"FREYA HELP!" Vivi screamed as he attempted to push against the wall. Freya turned and expertly slashed the roots; Vivi skipped forward from the severed tendrils and continued to push on the weakening lower right corner of the root-wall, now moving his hands in a way that seemed to pull the roots apart.

No longer paying attention to her back, more roots shot out and wrapped themselves around Freya's ankles. They pulled her feet out from under her and she slammed into the floor of the tunnel, "VIVI!" She screamed, Vivi looked over his shoulder to see the roots pulling her into an opening in the wall, Vivi continued to push, gritted his face, and suddenly he began to glow.

There was a bright flash that enveloped him, and when the light died Vivi stood before Freya, glowing brightly, hat perfectly pointed, and clothes clean and crisp.

"AHHHHH!" Vivi screamed and pushed into the wall with everything he had. The root wall splintered apart and fell to shreds. Vivi stopped before he fell any further, whipped around and shot several spears of ice into the roots and then followed up with a burst of raging fire. The attacks instantly severed the roots and roasted the remainder.

He ran to Freya and helped her to her feet, "Let's go!" he said, he turned, grabbed his Mace of Zeus and into the newly opened chamber. The wall behind them resealing now, the same precaution to kill the remaining flames.

Vivi took a deep breath and sat down in the center of the small circular chamber.

"Vivi…" Freya began, her eyes on the wall opposite the entrance.

"Yeah, Freya?" Vivi asked, still breathing heavily.

"You have to see this." She said, very calmly.

Vivi became excited, hopped to his feet, and ran to her side.

Before him lay a small, aging mound of dirt, above it an inscription that was carved with a dagger.

_Here lies Kuja,_

_A brother,_

_and a forgiven man_

Vivi couldn't contain himself, seeing what he had now, "HE'S ALIVE! YEAH-HA-HA! HE'S ALIVE!" He cried, Freya laughing with him, he jumped to hug her and she spun him around. Freya set him back down.

"He's alive…" she echoed, a large smile playing on her features.

Author's note: I hope it wasn't too long….there were a couple of areas that I wanted to end it at…I didn't know it would end up being 12 pages so I apologize. And jonestly, if you hate me it is ALRIGHT! Let your emotions out in your reviews and your ideas for future chapters. Because there will definitely be more! Expect another update very, _very_, soon. Call it writers' block! Call it laziness! Call it what you will but I'm here to stay!

Please leave a review and let me know what you thought, it'll only take a moment of your time.

Also, if you'd like to give me ideas in private just go to my extremely bland author's page and leave me a message there.

A final note, I know of all the final ultimate weapons for characters and such…these just happened to fit the best for this part. Perhaps each character had its own favorite! You never know.

See you soon…D


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 PEWAT

Right off the bat I'm going to thank those of you who keep coming back for more. You're the ones who make it all worth while writing this thing. Thank you to: **KurosawaSae**, **MysticSpiritus, Tony WildRiver**, definitely my wonderful beta **Undeniable Mystique, **and **Love at Last Sight**. I know it's been short so far, but I'm just glad that I have people who enjoy it and keep coming back for more. You make me happy. D

Disclaimer: I do not own FFIX. Unfortunately I have no remotely witty quip to add to that. Because I'm not remotely witty. Sad Face Oh well. Time to read, yes? This was a quick update. I hope you're happy, and your happiness leads you to reviewing

Queen Garnet Til Alexandros XVII strolled through the meadows high atop of the plateaus of Alexandria. Her walnut locks flowing in the breeze, the grass bowing with the wind as if in honor to the Queen. Her mind was full of thoughts not in her own voice. It was a small voice, a large voice, a far off voice, a very near voice. So many things that had been said, and in all probability were being said, by other people, and the voices kept flickering through her mind.

Would she really abandon her kingdom? Who would rule in her absence? Who would know how to find her? What had led her out into the wilderness? Why was she doing this? _Where_ was she even going?

Dagger sighed as the questions were repeated over and over inside of her. She had wandered for nearly a full day. She guessed she had traveled a minimum of fifteen miles so far. The sun was low in the sky, threatening to disappear below the peaks of the mountains not too far off. She hadn't prepared for the trip. She'd left her Whale Whisker within the confines of her room, and the only magical amplification item she had on at the moment was the Mage's Cloak.

Sure, she could use simple healing spells and summon Eidolons without a rod or a racket but it always worked so much better with one. She could do it all so much more easily without focusing on what she wanted to happen.

She mentally kicked herself for rushing out so quickly without such a vital tool. She wasn't worried about monsters; the monsters near Alexandria were all such weak things. She hardly considered them a threat. However, she did worry about bandits, thieves, gangs. Sky pirates. They had become much more prevalent during the reconstruction era of all the major nations. They had a strong presence in the mountains of Alexandria, and most were based out of Lindblum.

This new breed of scum would buy a ship legitimately, then soar across the world in the new-fangled steam driven airships. In these hard economic times any means of generating profit that would go straight to the reconstruction of a kingdom was better than nothing. The Lindblum Air Authority gladly handed out ships for large sums that could rebuild entire city blocks. They had no idea their brash actions would cause such dire consequences. More of a nuisance really, the Lindblum Airforce could easily defend against any attacks.

However civilian airships had a much harder problem with defending against the new threat. The citizens were outraged that these hooligans would be allowed free reign. Lindblum had to up security measures along trade routes and jet-streams. However, the pirates just moved their activities to other nations, even other continents. Despite the good relations between all three nations in these new and historic times, Lindblum had no jurisdiction to enforce its law and rules on pirate ships that jumped the border, and completely ignored the rules of the North and South Gates.

Early into the new threat Alexandria was nearly powerless to enforce any type of law on these people who thought they were above the law. Arrests had been made, threats too, and through the use of their small number of ships the Alexandrians were able to protect the main points of interests for the pirates. However they couldn't defend every location and every route. Now, after ordering nearly three dozen ships from Lindblum the Alexandrians built new, larger airship docks, and awaited the arrival of the airships and the day in which they could defend themselves against these terrorists who stood by no nation.

It was in these rural and isolated locales that pirates would set up camps, shanties, or simply landed in makeshift docks high in the mountains. It was in that precise type of location that Garnet was in now that these pirates survived, and it was these pirates that presented the only conceivable threat to the Queen, and the only one that really, truly, worried her.

She could scare them off with a show of force, Bahamut, of course, could do the job, but she could only do that so many times, and without a stock of ethers, and no tents to rest in, she decided the use of a devil like Ifrit was a much better idea.

Dagger looked around her surroundings. She knew the horizon was ten miles away, Zidane had offered her that small nugget of information. He was full of such things. She could always gauge distance and time of travel to their next destination when they moved on foot. She looked back and could make out the very tip of the Alexandrian Sword poking over the horizon, the color of the sun and sky burned the sword red-hot.

She turned from her kingdom and made off for the mountains, night would quickly be falling, the mountains offered protection from the elements, for both her, and others. She had enough light left, and time. She could be five hundred feet up the mountains by the time night had finally settled. She decided all she needed to do was find a cave, maybe some fallen trees to lie under. She had no qualms about it. In order to keep herself strong, healthy, and aware she would do whatever necessary: sleep anywhere, eat anything, (nothing poisonous, of course), go anywhere. She would do anything it took. Her resolve to find Zidane surpassed her want to destroy Necron two years previously.

The mountains were very near now. The rocky behemoths rose above the landscape as she walked closer and their bases came within view over the horizon. She gauged she was ten miles off. Maybe another hour walking at this pace she would be there before it got too cold.

Her journey continued uneventfully. She made an attempt at keeping herself occupied by summoning small charms between her hands. Pocket sized entertainment in the palm of her hand. It did very little to end the repetition. She was very bored. She had the will and the determination, and she would do everything in her power to find Zidane, but the journey away from Alexandria and to the mountains seemed like it would take years. It was just monotonous. One foot in the front of the other, over and over, nothing ever changed at this stage in the game.

Game. She let out a noise that sounded like a combination between a sigh and a small chuckle. She repeated the word in her head. Game. This was no game. Abandoning her throne was not some maneuver that would award her several points and put her in the lead; neither was rappelling down a wall using a tapestry; nor was sprinting across rooftops. In all seriousness, this was as far from a game as anything she had ever done had come. If Zidane was still alive, his very life could hang in the balance, if he was not…well…then her own life could hang in the balance.

Dagger did not want proof. She didn't want evidence of his survival, nor of his death. She wanted to find Zidane, be it in death or life. She wanted either to live with him happily until their own ends came, or she would find his body, and put him to rest; maybe then, she could rest as well.

The sobering thoughts took hold of Dagger, she drew a deep breath and looked toward the sky as it grew darker. The streaks of red, orange, and gold pulling back behind the mountains, on the other side was the deep blue, quickly turning black, billions of stars like pinpricks in a black blanket letting the light in. Now the moon and Terra began rising into the sky too, from below the horizon, below the cliffs the two rose higher into the sky.

Finally, she was within running distance of the base of the mountains, where she stood now the foothills began sloping up to meet the cracked and rocky bases. She walked a few steps up the hill then turned and sat down.

She pulled the cloak's hood down and allowed herself to take in the magnitude of the beauty of the night sky. She laid back and watched the stars, countless in number near the horizon, but thinning as she looked straight up, where the sky was still a dim salmon color.

They wouldn't be this vibrant for long. Once the planets caught the glow of the Sun and reflected it back twice as strong, they would outshine the lights of the stars, galaxies and nebulas hanging so high above her head.

Dagger drew another deep breath and continued resting for a while. A look of disappointment came to her face; she realized she couldn't stay here forever. She stood up and continued back up the hills. She kept on her way, finally grass met rock and she was climbing the mountains, she looked around and quickly found a large gaping black hole a few hundred feet up and to her right.

She decided it was there that she would spend her first night away from a castle, or a palace, in two years. She smiled at the thought. Again memories filled her head. She felt as though she was trying to live in the past, and she honestly wished she did. She had wished for her adventures and travels never to end. Never in her entire life had she been as happy as when she had traveled with her friends. Nothing since then had ever compared to that happiness.

Now all she felt were sorrow, and coldness, where happiness, warmth, and a feeling of contentment had once rested. Sure, the world had been on the brink of oblivion but she didn't mind. Call it selfish, but she was happier then than ever before or after.

She was soon at the entrance of the cave; she cast a small charm between her hands and used its glow to light her way. She continued slowly into the cave, cautious as to what she might find. She traveled a mere fifty feet and found a bed of moss. She thought it strange.

How could moss grow in such a place? She quickly accredited it to the dampness. It was not lichen, it was soft; it was certainly moss. It was thick, she guessed it grew between the cracks in the floor of the cave, and gathered its sunlight early in the morning when the sun would undoubtedly pour into the opening in the wall of mountains.

Dagger pulled her cloak off and balled it up; a makeshift pillow. She sat on the moss, a sad expression played on her face. If anyone had seen her at this moment it would be obvious she was thinking about Zidane.

A single tear rolled down her cheek. She brushed it away and laid her head down to sleep.

**XxX**

Dagger was startled by voices in the darkness. She had been sleeping peacefully on the bed of moss, it was surprisingly soft.

"C'mon, Dagger, get up it's time to go!" The voice called happily.

"You fool! Leave the Princess alone! She'll make ready when she pleases!"

"Geez Rusty, bust a friggen hinge, I just wanna get going." The voice replied.

"Gah! If it wasn't for the Prin—"

"It's all right, Steiner, I'm awake." Dagger said, opening her eyes and rising up.

"Daggerrrr! Wake up!" the voice seemed a little annoyed now.

"I just said I'm aw—"

"I told you to leave her alone! She's obviously exhausted from yesterday's battles! Now leave her be!"

"Steiner, be quiet, I said I'm awake. We can get go—"

"She can't sleep now! We have to get to Kuja's hide out! For all we know he might be leaving right now! We have to catch up! She has to wake up!"

"What are you talking about?" Dagger asked, "Kuja's dead. His palace is destroyed. And I am awake!"

"I understand that, you hooligan, but if our healer is not up to the challenge then we had better let her rest so that when the time comes she can heal us properly!"

"I'm already awake!" She stated angrily.

"Wake up, already!" Zidane raised his voice, looking at her knees, "Fine! I'll just carry her for now then!" The voice called back.

"Don't you dare touch the Princess! It's not right! You're unfit to handle such a person of power!"

"Watch me." Zidane raised his eyebrows and walked over to her.

She watched as Zidane walked toward her, her chest swelling with excitement.

He bent down and stood up, holding a slightly younger looking version of Dagger. Realization hit her like a hammer blow. She clenched her jaw and her eyes stung. She watched as the three disappeared into a newly forming darkness, a black mist that began raining down, dissolving the simple, yet beautiful scene.

"I said wake up!"

This time a new voice called out, one she had never heard before. She looked around in the darkness but could not find the source of the voice.

"Quit talkin' in yer sleep, get offa mah bed and wake up!" The old voice demanded.

"Where are you?" Dagger asked sleepily, "I can't see you..."

"Try openin' yer eyes, darlin'. That might help some." The irritated old voice told her.

Dagger opened her eyes and blinked stupidly, as though it were the first time she had ever used them.

The person from whom the voice emanated was a very old woman. Her face inches from Garnet's. Garnet was startled and jumped to her feet and backed against the wall.

The woman was pathetically small. Her hunched back only diminished her already negligible height. Her head rose to just below Dagger's bosom.

She wore a patched red smock, her grey hair tied up in a tight bun high on the back of her head. Her face was tight, it looked as if she had just eaten something sour, but there was a kindness to it. Her pants were of wool, thick, soft, and obviously warm. The pants were overlarge for her small frame and rested on the tops of her small, bare feet.

"Who are you?" Garnet asked, a little less afraid of the frail woman.

"That's not importan'. You haven' got much time left, dear." She said, now on her knees, brushing away at the moss as if cleansing it of some unseen filth. The woman spoke with a broken English accent. She'd obviously lived here many years.

"What are you talking about?" she asked her.

"Evereh day he spends there his chances of survival lessen." She said, continuing to brush at the moss, and pushing the cloak to Dagger's feet.

"What do you mean? How do you even know what I'm looking for?" Garnet asked, stooping for the cloak, "and who the hell are you?" she asked, becoming annoyed as her questions continued to be ignored.

"I said it buhfore. I ain't no one importan'. Ya've gotta get goin' though, do ya haff transpertation?"

"Wha—? No, I haven't any means of transportation. I'm on foot at the moment. Why should it even matter?" she replied.

The woman seemed surprised at this, "Ya made et here fairleh fast then. By any means, ya mus' get goin' now. Not much time remains. 'e says the portal will close soon, ya've gotta 'bout a week, maybe less." She said, now pushing the girl out of the cave.

Dagger's boots skidded across the ground as the woman used strength uncharacteristic of her size, "Wait, wait, what are you talking about? Who said the portal will close soon? What portal?!" Dagger was becoming annoyed, none of her questions were being answered by this woman who assumed she knew everything she was speaking about.

"What'd'ya mean, 'who? and wha' portal?'. The portal in the Iifa tree! How else do ya think all o' you were brought back from Memoria?" She stated matter-of-factly, as if it should be common knowledge.

"What? How do you know about Memoria?" Dagger was becoming increasingly confused. She'd finally gotten one answer from the woman but it had only lead to more questions. She had to restrain herself from striking the old woman across her pruny face, "Where does the portal lead, and why is it closing now?"

"The portal! C'mon! Ya've been there! Portal takes ya ta Terra! C'mon girl, have ya any brains in that skull o' yours or is it just filled with pretty hair?" The woman snapped, "He's been tryin' to get in contact with ya for ages, ya've only just realized it now! The remainin' power o' the Iifa Tree is dying. It'll be gone soon, and 'e'll be lost fore'er."

Dagger growled in frustration, "_Who_," she emphasized the word by shaking her hands, "has been trying to contact me?" She asked the woman, her brow furrowed.

The woman just gave her a surprised and quizzical look, as though the answer should be obvious.

Dagger groaned again, "Fine! Ya know what? If you won't answer my questions, then I'm gone. Sorry about sleeping in your bed, thank you for your hospitality. Goodbye!" She said, marching from the cave in anger, and pulling the cloak on as she left.

She made it to the entrance, jumped off the ledge to the right and began her way up the mountain. It was early morning. Very early. Dagger looked at the position of the sun in the sky and guessed it was around 6 or 7 am, and the sun was to her back.

She continued climbing, the conversation replaying in her mind. The same burning question asked over and over again.

"Who?" She said it out loud. None of it made sense. The woman was obviously senile. She must have mistaken her for someone else. But how did she know about Memoria? And the Iifa Tree? There was no possible way this old hermit who lived in a cave knew anything about it, or had ever seen either of them. It was lunacy.

But _who_? The question captivated Dagger, it was as if the answer hung in the air before her and forced her to climb the mountain to find the answer. She continued after it, this burning shadow of an answer. Something so tantalizingly close, yet unattainable, unreachable.

It had no substance. Maybe the question didn't either. Furthermore, maybe the answer lacked substance as well; in all likeliness it probably lacked anything that would actually help her on her way. She drew her mouth in annoyance. She decided the woman was simply nuts. What she spoke of meant nothing. Yet the question sat at the back of her head, nagging and begging for an answer.

"_Who?" _existed so that the answer could be gained. Without the answer, it was just an annoyance. It seemed like it should have been simple. That stupid woman, withholding such things from her. What was the point in even saying anything if she would not give Dagger the answers?

A shadow covered Garnet, making her cold. She shivered in the lack of light. She looked behind her to see the sun there, the light burning her eyes.

But how could that be? How could a shadow now cover her? It made no sense. She looked up to see a silhouette of a man. She yelped and quickly looked down.

_You're not there, you're not there. _She quickly thought to herself. _Just leave me alone! I promise I'm coming for you! Just leave me be I'll find you soon! _She kept her eyes locked on the ground and she continued to climb.

The shadow did not dissipate, and she chanced another look at it. The silhouette stood there, hands on hips, below that, odd boxy pants.

Dagger bit her lip and looked back down. _Leave, just leave. I swear I'll come get you, just leave for now, I can't stand it when you do this to me!_

The shadow did not budge from his position, even as she moved up the mountain his shadow continued to stay on her. Then, it seemed to be moving. No longer a motionless sentinel. She looked up to see it waving its arm, beckoning her to him.

At this she climbed just a bit faster, she was scared even terrified. Was this really him?

_Who?_

Understanding dawned on her.

_Who?_

Who else? Of course he had! He'd done the same with her! Never noticed it until now? Had he attempted other times? She looked back up to see him missing. Her eyes widened. No! Why had he done it again?!

She then noticed movement off to her left. This time he was further down the mountain, yet somehow the bright light was still behind him, and he still beckoned for her. She changed course and began charging up the steepening mountain.

She slipped on a bit of a grit and she slammed her knee and shin into large rocks.

"Ah!" she yelped in pain, but continued up the mountain. Again she looked to her left to see if he was still there, yet again he had gone missing. Again the shadow covered her, and she looked to the apex of the mountain where he stood. Now using both hands to call her toward him. She was so near to him, she looked right at him, and he stood there, even calling to him. It was surreal.

She could hardly believe her eyes. Soon she was a mere twenty feet from him. Her lungs burned and her muscles screamed for her to stop, but she couldn't. She had to reach him. Sweat trickled down her forehead and she charged up. She kept in mind, that with each agonizing step she took, she was closer to an answer.

She finally did it.

She stood in front him, his silhouette darker than before, and the light behind him brighter than ever. She side stepped him and looked behind, but there was no bright light. She turned and looked at him for what he was.

Garnet gasped and ran to him trying to grab him, but only swiping through the misty figure.

He took a step back, and she took in the sight of her beloved. He was bleeding from multiple gouges in his midsection, where his vest was torn. A large black gaping hole in his right shoulder where it looked like a large spear had penetrated. His face was bruised, and he had a large scrape along his left cheek.

Dagger gasped, her breath stuck in her throat. Her jaw trembled as she tried to reach out to him again, but he took another step back and pointed with his right arm to the north east, out to sea.

Dagger began sobbing uncontrollably at the sight of Zidane, so badly broken, bruised, and bleeding. It appeared his left arm was broken, his fingers too. When he had left he looked perfectly fine. She couldn't understand what had happened to him.

She fell to her knees crying on the soft grass that grew here on the plateau at this height. She couldn't bear the sight of him like this. She closed her eyes to him, and she felt a warmness overcome her, and a tingle on her cheek. She brushed it away and looked back up at the wounded hero who held a misty hand to her face. He gave her a sad smile, and again pointed out to sea. Garnet rubbed her eyes and hiccupped, she too then looked out over the ocean, her eyes still stinging.

A bright flash came from over the horizon; she shielded her eyes against it, the image stayed burned into her retinas. She looked back to Zidane. His hands at his side now. He smiled the same sad smile as before. He raised his right hand, pressed it to his lips and grazed her cheek with his fingers.

Garnet drew deep breaths, attempting to hold back the sobs. She felt the tingle of his hand on her cheek, and watched as his form dissolved into a fine mist.

**AWW! What!? A Cliffy!? Chin-Chilla Boy sucks! I hate his username! Honestly! A Cliffy?!**

**Well leave a review, maybe I'll be nice…**

**Or I could just stop updating this story too…**

**Just for future reference, if you have an idea, keep it secret! PM me!**

**Now…leave a review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**HE LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVES**

Three years. Three. Years. THREE. YEARS. **THREE.** _**YEARS**_**.** **WTF!** Oh my Lord I am so sorry.

In three years I did a little growing up. I'm 19 and I'm a Private in the United States Marine Corps now. Wow. I cannot begin to express how much I regret my utter failure to update and write.

I just read all 7 chapters again and after 3 years I honestly impressed myself a little bit. I can't believe I didn't ever continue this. The story, from a 3 year old perspective, is actually pretty good! I would WANT to know what was coming after that and now it's going to happen!

**I AM SO SORRYY!**

SquareEnix owns everything.

The Flaming Amarant strolled leisurely through the streets of Treno; the yellow light of the street lamps making the buildings on either side seem so much close, kind of cozy. It was his home, but for some reason walking in these old cobblestoned streets shining with the early morning dew gave him a strange feeling.

What it was he couldn't quite place his finger on. He felt like he was back in time. Not so much nostalgia but true time travel. He walked these streets every day. This had always been his home, and when he wasn't carrying out shadowy assignments, he was here. It had, however, been sometime since he'd done anything in Treno that somehow related to Zidane Tribal.

He tried to put his finger on it, but couldn't quite gauge what it was. His best guess was that it was due to the fact that he _was_ doing something related to Zidane. Being part of some adventure, even if Zidane wasn't around, made him feel like he was with the crew all over again.

As if he really had a choice in the matter. Steiner would do everything in his power, which was a great deal at this point, to make his life a living hell if he didn't comply with the knight.

In what world wouldn't I help? He thought to himself. Well...I guess a world two years ago, but c'mon. I mean, I know it's not like I'm some knight in shining armor or anything...but this is a pretty messed up situation. Even if the kid is dead, he did a lot for me, even gave me Lani in a way, I owe him. So, I'll do this. Weird, I don't even mind. Guess the loser really did change me.

Amarant continued down the narrow street with his long gait, the rich folk of the city nowhere to be seen. It was just the beggars, conmen and homeless of Treno. He was finally at his old haunt, he was in the slums. It's where any person who knew anything lived; anything of interest that is. With the exception of Doctor Tot, everyone else had a head full of air. The slum kids knew more about the real world than some merchant's rich money sucking school child.

The blood haired giant decided he would poke around here and investigate a little, dig up what information he could, if any. He knew this little place, he knew he'd find persons of interest there, and it was just up the boardwalk a little ways. Down a ladder off to the right and to the left there was a short stone staircase between two three story shanties leading to a very narrow alley just big enough to give the large thief's massive shoulders about an inch of clearance on either side.

Just a little ways down the alley and there was nothing to see.

"Hm…" Amarant mused aloud, "looks like they've changed up the security a bit."

He looked at the blank crumbling brick wall to his left. He leaned against the opposite building and mulled over what he was seeing. There was not very much to look at. The obvious things came to mind. To his left a drainage pipe ran down the building and into a shallow gutter running away from the staircase. A small pile of debris near the mouth of the pipe; to the right of that a broom stood leaning against the building. Off to his right several boards were stacked haphazardly.

But he knew it had to be something more than that. Use the boards to build some kind of lever to open the hidden hatch? Definitely too complicated for some of the lackeys. What could it be, use the broom to swipe away the pile of dirt and flip some hidden switch? No, too simple, any guard in Treno could find that.

As if they cared, he thought, most were paid off anyway, either by the conmen and gangsters or by the wealthy merchant families. As if either of their businesses were any more legitimate than the others. Amarant chuckled softly to himself. That's when his searching eyes noticed it, something a little more subtle; a brick missing from the cobblestone floor of the alley.

His eyebrows rose at the sight, quick not to let his low key enthusiasm overtake him. He tilted his head nonchalantly and began to wonder. His eyes turned this way and that, and within several minutes he believed he had it pieced together. These weren't puzzle masters after all, they were scoundrels, and some kind of underworld has to exist, and it can't if some dimwitted conman can't get the code.

The boards and pile of dirt were inconsequential, but the brick, the pipe, and the broom were not. The tip of the broom had had its end whittled to a fine point; one might even see an arrow. Above it and to the left, in the direct path of the broom tip, a bolt was missing from the bracket where the pipe was bolted to the wall. It would take a keen eye to notice something so unimportant. Looking down to the cavity left by the missing brick he spotted the dull rusted remainder of the bolt lying inside.

The giant thief stooped and snatched up the bolt with his left hand between his thumb and forefinger. He brought it to his lips and blew the grim off. He crossed the small distance between the buildings and placed the bolt back into its bracket on the pipe. A tiny audible click was heard first from the bolt and then from below, as if emanating from the pile of garbage and dirt below the pipe.

Amarant paid no mind to the pile; instead, he reached up into the pipe. His hand moved straight up the angled pipe and into the wall of the building, the switch in the bolt hole had been flipped and opened a false back of the pipe.

Within the small hole the big scoundrel groped about and found the missing brick. Anybody's hand would be too large to grasp the brick and pull it out, probably a ruse they had devised on purpose. Amarant twisted his hand so his palm faced up; he fingered the brick and wriggled his fingers underneath it. Slowly and carefully he brought the brick into the palm of his hand. The sleuthing man slowly brought his hand out, the brick resting precariously upon his palm. He got to the angle of the pipe and snatched his hand out, brick in tow.

The broad shouldered giant moved to the cavity of brick nimbly, examining it and the brick. The hole was missing a bit of material in the upper left corner, and another corner of the brick had just a little too much. He flipped the brick and placed it in its place.

There was a loud pop and behind him, unexpectedly, a portion of the building began to shift away to reveal a heavy dark and aged mahogany door.

"Well that's new. I thought it was the other building," he thought absentmindedly. The Flaming Amarant stooped low and turned his body so he could fit inside the tiny passageway that had opened to him. He grasped the knob and allowed himself in. The thief regained his full height inside the glowing hidden speakeasy within.

He closed the door softly behind him and listened as the bricks shifted back into place.

The trick must change with each person that enters, he guessed. I wonder what the deal is now. He left the thought unattended and gained his bearing within the covert tavern.

Nobody in the tavern made any notice of his entrance. These were high class criminals; they had bigger fish to fry than some smalltime thief. Amarant didn't mind. It'd be easier for him to shake things up if needed. No rep is better than any rep he thought. He could be anyone he wanted. In the two years since his posters had been taken down his notoriety had virtually disintegrated. Besides his clients nobody really gave him much thought, most had outright forgotten, lots who knew had moved on with business and his memory was left behind.

In front of him there were two circular tables with small three prong candelabras in the center of each. The floors were bare and made of thick dark wooden planks. The ceiling was of the same dark red wood as the door, the rafters hung low, but comfortable enough for Amarant's height. Several wooden chandeliers full of candles hung just below the rafters, the candles were burning low, and a warm dim yellow-orange light bathed the entire tavern. It was just light enough to make out the features of the room. The men of the underworld sat amongst themselves, tending to their drinks.

They spoke in hushed tones, so as not to let the competition hear about their next game. Amarant knew it all, and the feeling of time travel rushed in once more. He blinked and shook his head quickly. He opened his eyes and blew out his remaining air in a short push in an attempt to clear his mind.

Beyond the two round tables near the door were several large timbers holding the ceiling up, and beyond those a large and populated bar extended in a large deep rectangular horseshoe from the wall on the left.

Amarant made his way to the bar, asking those who stood out to him what kind of services they could offer in the world of knowledge and espionage. Not a single one bit. He started with old men, moved to hippos and the like, even asked the bartenders young son. Amarant had worked his way around the large and crowded bar to the opposite side, and out of the dozen or so drinks he asked, none knew anything.

How could none of them know? Aren't these guys supposed to be the deal makers of our time? It's their job to know what's up. He sighed in annoyance.

He glanced to his left, and that's when the giant finally noticed him; off to the right of the rear corner of the bar in a dark and shadowed corner, alone in a booth, sat a four armed man.

Surprised he's around here again. I thought he went off the reservation just before we punched into Memoria, Amarant thought to himself.

The four armed man could very well be Amarant's only true shot of getting information in a place that seemed bone dry.

The enormous scoundrel maneuvered through the tables, the men of the underworld paying little mind to him. They had their business, he had his. The less trouble he got here the quicker he could be done with this and onto the next job.

Amarant reached the table and stood. The four armed man paid no attention, he was playing a game of solitary with his tetra master deck.

"Hey, Jack. I got some questions and I'm sure you're the guy that can give me the answers, or at the very least point me in the right direction." The thug said coolly.

"Beat it, bud, you call me Jack then you must know about that much. Get to level S, then you can figure out my name. After that I'll tell you anything you want."

Damn! Amarant huffed to himself and turned. He knew the man wasn't having any of it. Without his name Amarant wouldn't get more than a cold shoulder. He walked back to the bar and ordered a drink. He stood at the bar, his back to the nearest wall, and mulled over what he knew.

What had the man said? 'Find me when you're level S and I'll tell you my name." It seemed clear to Amarant. But it was escaping him! Zidane had been a level S treasure hunter. This was the Four Armed Man, Alleyway Jack. But what was his real name? He knew it, he was sure. Grant, Gerry, Jerry? No, that's not it. He ordered himself another drink.

Moby? What? No. Wait. Yes! That's it!

Gilgamesh. Zidane had outdone himself. Amarant was glad finally recall the information.

Amarant left his drink and stepped into the circular booth next to the adventurer and took a seat.

"Let's talk, Gilgy," a wicked smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

Gilgamesh was clearly unamused by the nickname. The man set his cards down, folded his hands, and looked hard at Amarant with cold eyes.

"Call me that again and you won't leave your seat. All right, fine. You have my attention. What do you want?" Gilgamesh raised his eyebrows and kept his mouth tight, waiting for the response.

Amarant wasted no time now that he'd been given the go ahead. "What do you know about the whereabouts of a Zidane Tribal?"

"You know what; it's funny that you should ask, because I had the same niggling little question itching in the back of my mind off and on for about a year and a half."

It'd been two years and some change, Amarant thought, what had happened around six months ago?

"Well, what made you stop wondering?" He said, his tone cold and frosty.

Gilgamesh leaned in and with a sick half smile tugging at the corner of his mouth he whispered to the thief. "Couldn't tell ya," he paused for several agonizing seconds, "but gil has a mouth of its own, ya know."

"You really want to play that card? You have a great rep here, but I know your little secret, Gilg."

"I told you to stop calling me that." He began.

Amarant cut him off, "you're not even level S but you play like you are, blowin' through joints using your status to gain points and score jobs wherever you want."

The treasure hunter scoffed with a sarcastic smile across his face and leaned further into the table. "What could you possibly got that I don't already have or know about?"

Amarant leaned forward as well, bringing his face very close to Gilgamesh's, ". Gimme the scoop and I won't blow your whole game out of the water." He took a pause and then said, " and I dunno, a broken jaw," he said menacingly.

Amarant laid both his hands on the table plain to see. He flicked the small claw release switch near his left thumb on his hand and his three pronged cat claw flipped forward from its position against his forearm. "Fewer limbs too."

The four armed man sat back in the booth and grimaced. His ploy had utterly failed against this beast of a man. He was huge, nimble, smart and apparently ruthless.

He heaved a disgusted sigh and began his story, "all right, all right. Put that damn thing away. So about eight months ago it goes like this." He paused, held up a finger and blinked slowly.

"Now, Red, keep up, because I'm only saying this once, and when it's done, you got your story, and I'm going to go on my way, you got me?"

"Sure, now bump your gums and let's hear it already." Amarant said impatiently, he reached for his blade and reset it against his arm, sure to make a show of it.

Gilgamesh's eyes followed the blade, though he tried to hide it. A smirk pulled at Amarant's mouth.

"So I have some colleagues based out of Lindblum, see? You know the type. Guys who play big cons, what with the atmosphere in the Grand Castle nowadays, pulling any kinda job is easier than you'd think. These chumps hit up some rich grandmother here in Treno, a divorcee maybe, a widow, what have you, woo her you know?

"Well, see, they get their hands deep in her pockets and once they've gotten what they need, you know, some pinstriped suit, the rings, the jewelry, fancy watches what _have_ you," Gilgamesh's voice seeped with venomous annoyance, "they beat feet. They show up back in Lindblum and they sell themselves to the Air Authority as some kind of big bank investor type from some small upscale operation in Alexandria or some damn thing like that.

"Well, when the industrial district bit the dust so did a lot of the experienced operators in Lindblum. Nothing but newbies running the show up in the Authority and with so much rebuilding going on, sure the government is bigger than ever there, but the lack of oversight is unbelievable from what these cats tell me. So they play as big investors, they say, hey, you gimme a little, make a big play in the markets, turn it around and I cut you back ninety percent of the profit and I keep a ten percent commission.

"The bueaurocrats think it's a godsend, I've heard tell of this little play being made at least fifteen different times by several big players among a dozen different offices. So they take the money, shred the identity, turn around, and buy a brand new airship, free, thanks to the Lindblum guvvies."

Amarant felt the story was getting a little too long for interest, "Get on with it," he snarled, "I know how the damn pirates get their start, I don't care. I need to know what you know about Zidane."

"Look, I'm getting to that don't pop a cluster kid."

In a flash of movement Amarant hit the release switch and the blades whooshed out menacingly from his forearm, his arm shot forward and he held the blade millimeters from his throat. The four armed man's eyes widened, his eyebrows rose and his mouth hung open in total surprise.

He swallowed loudly, "so this is the thing. Those pirates, well I do deals with them, up in the mountains like twenty or so miles north of Alex, they got these giant caves and crevasses where they dock their new ships, they overhaul them fix them up hide them make them look legit." He spoke quickly, intent on getting the information out and this madman away from him. Amarant lowered the blade for a second time.

"Anyway, I get a call one day, they say they're getting problems from a local…I dunno. Madwoman. But that's not the only thing, they say they got ghost problems too."

"Ghosts?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah, they wanna'd a hire me. Drive off the woman, because no matter what they do, _they_ can't, and they want me to get rid of the ghost at the same time. All right, fine, I tell 'em. I went. This big ol' hangar up in the mountains, there's at least twenty of them. If and when Alexandria gets the power, they're gonna have a helluva time dislodging them from those roosts, but, I digress.

"Ya see, I went up there, not more than seven months ago. I may not be level S but I know my way around. I got to the docks, and wouldn't you know it? The old lady was there, more than that, the friggen ghost was too! It was this weird…I dunno what."

"Tell me this leads to something about Zidane." Amarant sighed, he was wishing he had found a person with a shorter breath.

"I'm getting to it. Thing is, the lady was talking to it. It was talking to her. In some little nook of the dock, the pirates wouldn't go near, and the ghost wouldn't let them, right? She was just sitting there on the deck, legs crossed and eyes shut.

"She was humming and the thing was moving all weird and…I dunno, it looked like a stupid dance to me. It was like a séance I guess. Whatever. Whatever it was, she was talking to the damn thing. Nodding, changing her little chanty hum, talking. She knew every word it was saying. She kept saying too, over and over, just, running out of time, running out of time. Besides the chanting that's all she said. 'Running out of time.'

"I never heard a thing come out of its mouth. Well I move to take a shot at it, the thing flies at me. Like, well not literally, but he just charged. You wanna know what it charged with?"

"I'm dying," Amarant's voice was cold and monotone.

"A dagger," Gilgamesh watched as the eyebrows of the flaming haired assassin rose with understanding and skepticism, "now, I couldn't see it straight on, sure, but I remember Tribal. Tail, stupid pants stuffed with I dunno what, big cuffs with no sleeves but a vest, like some kinda dancer over at the _Come Hither_, and you know_ exactly _what I mean. The thing was a bright light, and some black figure right in front of it. All shadowy and such. Spooked me real good. Like a big silhouette you could _never_ really look at it. It was always silhouetted by the sun or something weird. But it had all that stuff! The tail, the pants everything!

"Well that's who the ghost was. I know it. Especially now that you're comin' and lookin'. I know. Anyway the thing charged me, drew a dagger, and it stabbed me! Can you believe that? This misty weird thing sticking straight through me."

"How are you alive?" True curiosity in his voice, his tough demeanor totally evaporated.

"Well it wasn't solid, see? Just a weird attack, and I went blind! Darkness. Couldn't see a damn thing, I groped my way back to ask the pirates for some eye drops! Anyway, I ended up having to call in a few favors, a couple of red mage friends came, we popped them outta there. No, we didn't hurt anybody, but we drove them right out.

"Those particular pirates haven't seen the lady or the ghost since, but others have, not in their docks but just around the hills. From the air they see that tiny orb of light and the weird figure, just…wandering. It goes all over the hills and mountains, just wandering. The pirates are straight spooked by the sight. Ha! They think he's a lost spirit, literally. He doesn't know where he is! What a hoot. The pirates, they got all religious because of it. Using symbols and what not to ward it off, and here it is, the spirit of Tribal! What a freakin' knee slapper."

"Well, take it easy you little spidery dope!" Amarant was up and halfway across the tavern calling over his shoulder.

He coolly made it to the mahogany door, waited for the bricks to shift, stooped and pivoted and charged out the little hole into the alley, up the stairs, onto the boardwalk and out into the city and out the main gate.

They're going to enjoy this, he thought as he sprinted across the grassy fields toward south gate.

He had to catch the soonest flight to Alexandria as quick as he could. For all he knew he _was_ running out of time.

I know there was only talking in this one…but c'mon. Pacing. If you're new here, which you probably are because this hasn't been written in in three years, well the thing is, write a review, and/or send a PM telling me what you think should happen. It will be better I swear, I am just rusty. IT WILL BE COMPLETED. I HAVE NOT GIVEN UP. NOR SHALL YOU! :D


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